Recollections of a long life, with additional extracts from his private diaries : Edited by his daughter, Lady Dorchester

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ECOLLECTIONS OF
A LONG LIFE

RD BROUGHTON

1834-1840

RECOLLECTIONS OF A LONG LIFE

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RECOLLECTIONS OF
A LONG LIFE

BY LORD BROUGHTON

(JOHN CAM HOBHOUSE)

WITH ADDITIONAL EXTRACTS
FROM HIS PRIVATE DIARIES

I I) I TED BY HIS DAUGHTER

LADY DORCHESTER

WITH PORTRAITS. IN SIX VOLUMES
VOL. V. 1834 — 1840

LONDON
JOHN MURRAY, ALBEMARLE STREET, W.

191 1

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

DA

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CONTENTS

CHAPTER I

Dinner with Charles Grant — Edward J. Littleton — The O'Connell
Exploit — Spring Rice — Story of Pitt and the Mutiny at the Nore —
Departure for Scotland — First Railway Journey — Arrival in Glasgow
— Monteith's Manufactory — Lord Harrowby and Brougham — Cum-
bernauld— Taymouth Castle — The Due de Richelieu — Brougham's
Inscription for Watts Statue — Moness Falls — Deer-stalking on the
Black Mount — Lord Ossulstone — Lord Breadalbane and his Heir —
Craigie Hall — Dalmeny — Lord Grey's Entry into Edinburgh — Dinner
to Lord Grey — The Speeches — Visit to Holyrood — Oxenford — Telford's
Road and Viaduct — " The Bride of Lammermuir" — Yester House — Lord
Elcho and his Foxhounds, Whittingehame — Biel — Sir G. Warrender
— Lord Gillies — Chief Justice Doherty — Stories of Canning, and of
O'Connell — Manderston — Thirlstane — Lord Lauderdale — Stories of
Lord Lansdowne, and of Brougham, and of C. J. Fox . . pp. 1-20

CHAPTER II

Return to London — Burning of Parliament Houses — Dinner at
Holland House — Lord Melbourne's Opinion of Whigs and Tories —
King William — His Desire to get rid of Buckingham Palace — Death of
Lord Spencer — Lord Holland's Anecdotes of G. Selwyn — The Govern-
ment Dissolved — Our Last Cabinet Meeting — Lord Melbourne's High
Qualities — Lord Althorp's Opinion — Articles in the Tory Press —
Answer to the Quarterly Review — Sir F. Burdett's Intentions — Lord
Melbourne speaks out — Peel Prime Minister — William Linley —
Anecdote of Sheridan — I am elected for Nottingham — Visit to New-
stead — Colonel Wildman — Visits to Brocket and Woburn — Landseer —
End of the Elections — Marquess Wellesley — His Opinion of the Duke
<>f Wellington — Lady Holland and Lord Granville — Opening of Parlia-
ment— Abercromby Speaker — Dinner at Duchess of Kent's — Peel's
Failure — Death of Lady Julia Hobhouse — Peel's Resignation — Mel-
bourne Prime Minister — I am appointed to the Board of Control —
Court at St. James's — Marquess Wellesley's Indignation — Lord Durham
— Position of the Government — Mr. Coke of Norfolk — His Reminiscences
— C. J. Fox — Dinner at Lambeth Palace — Lord Palmerston's Audience
of the King — Lord J. Russell's Corporation Bill — Spanish Affaire —

Vi CONTENTS

Dorsetshire Labourers — Russell's Conversation with the King about
the Militia — About Foreign Politics — Russia, etc. — Attack on my
Department — Lord Heytesbury's Appointment — The King's Strange
Speech before Sir C. Grey — The King's Indiscreet Sayings — Lord
Radnor and the Thirty-nine Articles — Canadian Affairs — The King at
Caen Wood — Col. Conyer's Speech — Lord Auckland goes to India —
Lords' Debate on Corporation Bill — Melbourne's Anger — Mrs. Somer-
ville — "A Clap-trap Administration" — Remarkable Scene at a
Council — The King's Strange Speech on the Militia — Prorogation of
Parliament — Corsham — Visit to Bowood — Dinner at the Pavilion at
Brighton — Pricking the Sheriffs — Opening of Parliament — The King's
Tirade against Scotsmen and Lord Glenelg — Debate on the Spanish
War — Irish Affairs and a Lev6e — The King and Lord Minto — Con-
versation with Joseph Hume — Royal Academy Dinner — Lord Stanley
and his " Hotspur Speech " — Factory Children — A Narrow Majority —
Lord Melbourne and Mrs. Norton — The Queen's Ball — An Eclipse —
Visit to Whitton — Dinner at Whitbread's — Lord Grey's Temper — Lord
Holland on Roman Catholic Confession — Review in Hyde Park —
Debate on Newspaper Stamps — Lord Melbourne's Acquittal — Mr.
Grote's Speech on the Ballot — Irish Corporation Bill — Conference
between Lords and Commons — Proposed Marriage between Princess
Victoria and Prince of Orange — Dinner at Holland House — Discussion
about Edmund Burke — Lord Melbourne's Misgivings — Steam Com-
munication with India — Prorogation of Parliament — The King refuses
me Permission to go Abroad — Visit to Brighton and Chichester — Sir
Charles Hulse — Sir Joseph Copley's Fortune — Trafalgar House — Bath
— Chepstow — Tintern Abbey — Ross — Tour in Wales — The Menai
Bridge — At Kinmel Park — Dr. Buckland — Return to Putney —
Audience with the King — H.M.'s Opinion of George III. — Death of
Augustus Lamb — Brighton — A Hurricane — Dinner at the Pavilion
— Parliament opened by Commission — My Speech gives rise to Ru-
mours of Dissolution — Lady Holland's Annoyance — Anecdotes of
Nollekins — I meet Sir R. Peel — Friendship of Political Opponents —
Dinner at the Duchess of Kent's — The Rajah Ram Roy — Rumours of
Impending Crisis — Irish Tithe Bill — Lord Melbourne's Answer to Sir R.
Peel — Difficulties of the Government — Royal Academy Dinner — Sir F.
Burdett elected for Westminster — An Opponent of the Government —
Sunday Travelling in Scotland — Church-rate Resolution — Sir F.
Burdett's Philippic — Feuds in the Brunswick Family . pp. 21-72

CHAPTER III

Precarious State of the King's Health — Council at Windsor — The
Canada Bill — Rumour of the King's Death — Irish Tithe Bill — Roe-
buck's Speech — Death of William IV. — Summons to Kensington Palace
— Announcement of the News to Queen Victoria — H.M.'s First Audience
—Reading the Declaration — Swearing in the Privy Council — Meeting
in Downing Street — No Change in the Cabinet — The Proclamation

CONTENTS Vii

— Council at St. James's Palace — In the House of Commons — Addresses
of the Two Houses — The Recorder's Report — Dinner at Mr. Stanley's
— The King's Funeral — Description of the Ceremony — Duke of
Sussex's Comments — Queen Victoria on the Throne — Buckingham
Palace — The Queen transacts Indian Business — Sir Alexander
Burne's Books — The Queen's Charm of Manner — University Addressee
— Chapter of the Garter — Lady Becher and Lady Morgan — Council at
Buckingham Palace — The Queen prorogues Parliament — Dissolution
— The Queen's First Levee — Dinner at Buckingham Palace — Result
of General Election — Conversation with Lord Palmerston — Praise of
Lord Melbourne — Dinner at Buckingham Palace. Behaviour of the
Duke of Sussex — Concert — Erie Stoke — Macaulay's Essay on Bacon —
Uu.Uur Castle — Lord Melbourne and his Sovereign — The King and
(^iirrn of the Belgians — Mme Lehzen — I am invited to Breakfast —
A Morning Ride— Virginia Water— Dinner at the Castle— The Queen's
First Lesson in Chess — I go to Erie Stoke — William IV. and the Duke
of Bedford's Bust — The Duchess of Kent and Sir J. Conroy — Visit to
Bowood — Return to London — Baroness Lehzen and the Queen — The
Dm-lii'ss of Cornwall and Lancaster — Dinner at the Guildhall — Political
T. intrudes — Affairs of Lower Canada — Lord Gosford and Papineau —
Lord Gosford's Successor — Provision for the Duchess of Kent — Dinner
with the Queen — Cabinet Council — The Duchess of Kent's Affairs —
The Queen opens Parliament — Enthusiastic Reception — Liberty of
th. Press in Malta — The Irish Poor-law — Dinner at Buckingham
Palace— Royal Arithmetic 73-110

CHAPTER IV

Dinner with Mr. Stanley — And at Raleigh Club — Prince Lucien
urtt — Mr. O'Brien and Sir F. Burdett — The Spottiswoode Fund

Hmjamin Disraeli's Maiden Speech — Dinner with Duke of Sussex —
Hi.s Income — Dinner at Lord Melbourne's — Duchess of Kent's In-
come— Palmerston and Attwood — Council at the Palace — The Bishop
of Bombay — Canadian Affairs — Visit to Erie Stoke — Recalled to
London — Dispute between Brougham and Melbourne — Brougham's
Intemperate Speech — Dinner at Palace — Sir F. Head's Action in
Canada— His Despatch — Swearing-in of Lord-Lieutenants — Sir W. W.
\\ \. in— Lord Mount-Edgcumbe — Lord Lonsdale — Dinner with Ellice
— Lord Durham's Grievances — Brougham's Violent Attack on Canada
Bill— The Frozen Serpentine — Parliamentary Electors Bill — Travers
Li'i-ture at College of Surgeons — Peel on the Ballot — Baron de Bode —
Diiin. r at Buckingham Palace — Position of the Ministry, and County
Courts Bill — Pozzo di Borgo — The Wearing of Orders — Debate on
Canada— Dinner-parties — Anti-Slavery Meetings — Dinner with the
Duke of Sussex — The Duchess of Inverness — Dinner with Lord Durham

Mr. Pease on Abolition of Negro Apprenticeship — Royal Asiatic
Society — Preparation for Coronation — Coronation postponed — Pozzo
di Borgo and the Battle of Waterloo— Brougham in Paris— Ball at

Vili CONTENTS

Buckingham Palace — Sir E. Wilmot and Emancipation of Negroes —
Torn Moore and Sydney Smith — A Question of Precedence — Peel's
Jokes — Debate on Negro Emancipation — Brougham compared to

gatan The Portuguese and the Slave Trade — Wellington's Opinion

of the British Soldier — Dinner with Wilmot Horton — Anecdotes of the
French Revolution, etc. — Increase of Public Expenditure — Macaulay's

Talk Waterloo Ball at the Palace — The Wellington Memorial —

Resignation of Sir H. Fane, Commander-in-Chief in India — Suggested
Successors — Recollections of Lord Sidmouth and Pitt — Brougham and
his Anecdotes — Preparations for Coronation — The Coronation —
Marshal Soult — Coronation Coin — O'Connell hissed — The Fireworks —
General Ventura — Party of Lord Lansdowne — Success of Coronation —
Dinner with Marshal Soult — Lord Durham in Canada — Indian Labourers
Bill — Conversation with Palmella — State of Spain and Portugal —
Review in Hyde Park — Brougham attacks the Duke — Banquet at
Mansion House — Brougham's Behaviour — Confusion in Toasts.

pp. 111-156

CHAPTER V

Dinner with Palmella — Lord Stuart de Rothesay — Dinner at the
Palace — The Marquis of Dalmatia — Politics in France — The Duke of
Wellington and his Statue — Affairs in Persian Gulf — Maynooth —
O'Connell's Parody — Municipal Corporations Bill — Fish-dinner at
Blackwall — Sir John Campbell's Injudicious Speech — Opinions of
Lord Durham — Close of the Session — Dinner at Windsor — Service in
St. George's Chapel — The Queen's Riding-horses — Resignation of
Lord Durham — A Hurricane — Death of Lady John Russell — Dinner
at Lord Holland's — Lord Melbourne's Opinion of Public Schools — Mme
Sebastiani — Alava — Count Mol6 — Letter from Lord Durham — His
Misgivings — Cabinet Meeting — Criticism of Lord Durham — Dinner at
Beefsteak Club — Stephenson and Brougham — Lord G. Russell's
Education Scheme — Question of Increasing the Navy — Threatening
Aspect of Belgian Affairs — Crisis in Jamaica — Rebellion in Canada —
Marquess Wellesley's Opinion — Dinner at Buckingham Palace — Van
Amburgh and his Lions — Son of President Van Buren — Lady Bread-
albane— Lord Durham and Mr. Turton — Sir John Conroy and the
Czar Nicholas — Anecdote of the Queen and Van Araburgh's Show —
Opening of Parliament — Lord J. Russell on Reform — Lord Glenelg
resigns — R. Monckton Milnes — Lord J. Russell on National Education
— Speaker's Dinner — Count Ludolf — Russian Designs on India — Lord
Holland's Stories of Canning and Fox, and of Lord Egremont —
Chantrey and Waghorn — Lady Keith — Brougham at Home — Marshal
Clausel — His Reminiscences — Political Disquiet — Cabinet on Canada
Bill — Lord Normanby to succeed Lord Durham — Mr. Peacock —
Wedding of Lord Douro — Arab Horses for the Queen — Lord Dur-
ham's Return — Ellice criticises the Cabinet — The Queen at the Royal
Academy — Government resolves to resign — Colonel Sibthorp —

CONTENTS IX

Dinner at the Foreign Office — The Czarevitch — Peel and the Royal
Household — Melbourne recalled — "The Bedchamber Question "-
The Queen's Reply to Peel— Peel's Resignation— State Ball— Lord
Stanley's Ill-humour — The Queen's Domestic Companions — Cabinet
Council— The Queen and Peel — Anecdote of Sir R. Peel and his Father
— The Russian Grand-duke in the House of Commons — Peel's State-
ment about his Resignation — Sidney Smith — The Duke of Wellington's
Statement — Dinner at the Trinity House — Enthusiastic Reception of
the Duke pp. 157-200

CHAPTER VI

Macaulay — The Cries of Watchmen — Ellice and Canada — Stanley's
Furious Speech against Education Scheme — Lord Ashley — Conversa-
tion with the Duke — His Definition of Booty — Lord Douro — Historical
Contents of the House — Palmerston's Opinion of Huskisson — His
Indecision — Percival and " Orator Milnes " — Jack Fuller's Joke —
Conservative Addresses at a Levee— Thomas Drummond — Brougham
and Sir W. Somerville — Dinner at the Palace — Character of Queen
Victoria — The Quarterly Review Article on " The Household and the
Ministry " — Lord Tweeddale and the Indian Command — Interview
with the Duke of Wellington about the Command-in-Chief in India —
Sir John Keane — Sir John Colborne — Sir H. Hardingo — Lord Fitzroy
Somerset— Referred to Lord Hill— Interview with Lord Hill— The
Budget and the Factory Bill — Riots at Birmingham — The Indian
Command again — Lord Tweeddale not Appointed — Education Scheme
— An Address to the Queen — The Duke of Wellington on the Bir-
mingham Riots — Melbourne and Macaulay on the Nonconformists —
Henry Drummond, the Irvingite — Dr. Johnson and Ghosts — Visit to
Bunhill Fields — The Chartists — Portuguese Slave-trading Bill thrown
out by the Lords — Brougham's Eccentricities — The Duke's Opinion of
Lord J. Russell — State of the Bank of England — Melbourne on the
Church of England — Chartist Meetings — Mr. Hampton's Parachute—-
Ministerial Fish-dinner — Sir J. Campbell's Speech — Prorogation of
Parliament — Public Reception of the Queen — Capture of Kabul —
Dinner at St. James's Palace — Brougham's Adulation of the Duke —
Cabinet Changes — Lord Macaulay sworn in as Privy Councillor — The
China Question — The State Apartments at Windsor — Erie Stoke —
Report of Brougham's Death — Turns out to be False — Capture of
Guznee — Shah Soojah enters Kabul — Annoyance with Lord Melbourne
— Dinner at Holland House — Brougham's Hoax — Ministers hissed in
the City — School for Scandal at Covent Garden — Proposed Marriage of
the Queen — Settlement for Prince Albert — Private Audience of the
Queen — Illness of the Duke — Reform of Equity Courts — Baroness
Lehzen on Prince Albert — The Queen's Declaration — The Duke of
Cambridge and Brougham — Negotiations with America in 1782 — Visit
to Bowood — Lord Lansdowne as a Host — His Anecdotes of Bowles —
Conviction of Frost — Public Announcement of the Queen's Engagement

VOL. V b

X CONTENTS

— Macaulay's Account of Clive— The Queen opens Parliament— The
Trial of Frost, Williams, and Jones— The Southwark Election— The
Queen's Opinion of Peel— Arrival of Prince Albert— The Queen's Mar-
riage—The Duke has a Stroke— Proposed Commercial Treaty with
France — Sir H. Mildmay — At Court — Addresses of Congratulation —
Parliament — Peel attacks Palmerston — Conversations with Prince
Albert and with the Queen — Debate on Capital Punishment — Dinner
to Mr. Byng at Drury Lane — Dinner to General Whittingham — Mrs.
Austen — Guizot and O'Connell — Dinner at Palmerston's — Sir James
Graham's Speech on Affairs in China — Gladstone's Frantic Speech on
Opium Smuggling — Palmerston's Successful Speech — Sir G. Staunton
offended by my Remarks — The Opera La Tarantella — Conversations
with Prince Albert and with Lord Melbourne — Lord Auckland's
intended Resignation pp. 201-260

CHAPTER VII

Ragotski — Ripperda — Machiavelli's Mandragola — Cabinet Meeting
— The Opium Question — Children as Chimney-sweeps — The State of the
Finances — Death of Lord William Russell — Proposal for Removal of
Napoleon's Remains from St. Helena — The China Question — The
Duke's Speech — Capital Punishment — Palmerston's Letter about
Removal of Napoleon's Remains — Anti-Slavery Meeting at Exeter
Hall — "Little Wonder" wins the Derby — Ardaseer, the Parsee
Shipbuilder — Baroness Lehzen on the Queen's Education and Literary
Tastes — And her Character — The Queen attacked by Oxford — Question
of Proceedings — Examination of Oxford — His Committal — Addresses
in Parliament — Sir Hussey Vivian and the Bullet-marks — The Scottish
Church Question — Registration Bill — Canada Union Bill — Courvoisier
hanged — Lord Palmerston and the Egyptian Question — Trial of
Oxford — Poor-law Continuance Bill — Political Offences — Acquittal of
Oxford — Dinner to Lord Keane — Lord Abinger's Anecdotes — George III.
and Dundas — Lord Keane's Speech — Sir H. Pottinger — Regency Bill
— Political Spies — Lady Clanricarde on Russian Society — Ecclesiastical
Titles Bill — Dinner at M. Guizot's — Duke and Duchess of Nemours —
Conversation with Guizot about the Convention — Gladstone's Speech
on the China Vote — Lord G. Bentinck — William IV. and Queen Victoria
— Conversation with Brunnow — Louis Napoleon's Expedition to
France — Ministerial Fish-dinner — Macau ay in the Chair — English
and Foreign Fleets — Lord Lovelace — Prorogation of Parliament —
Lord Durham's Death — His Character — Dr. Bowring — Stories of Lady
Hester Stanhope— And of Colonel Perronet-Thompson— Mahomet
Ali — J. P. Wilde (Solicitor-General) and Courvoisier — The Defence of
Criminals — O'Brien and Basil Montagu — Captain Abbott, our Envoy
from Khiva — Stories of Afghans — A Forged Passport — Stories of Mr.
Peacock — Birth of Princess Royal — Capture of Acre — Disclosure of
Cabinet Secrets — Lady Holland's Sorrows — Letters from Captain
Mitchell and Captain Stapleton pp. 261-300

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

LADY DORCHESTER Frontispiece

From a portrait by R. Buckner, R.A.

FACING PAGE

ERLE STOKE PARK 96

From a water-colour by Lord Henry Percy, V.C., 1860.

MARCHIONESS OF TWEEDDALE (nee LADY SUSAN MONTAGU) 184

From a miniature by Madame Renaud in 1827.

RECOLLECTIONS OF A
LONG LIFE

CHAPTER I

FROM BOOK, "RECOLLECTIONS."

August 15. — I dined with Charles Grant,1 1834.
President of the Board of Control, at a sort of
farewell dinner given to his brother Robert, on
going to Bombay. I sat between Spring Rice
and Littleton, by both of whom I was much
entertained. Littleton told me that Graham's
famous motion for returns of Privy Councillors
holding office was suggested by Lord Wellesley,
who, in the first instance, proposed that the motion
should be confined to places held by Cabinet

1 Charles (1778-1866) and .Robert (1779-1838) Grant were the sons
of Charles Grant, who after a distinguished career in the Service of
the E.I.C. became chairman of the Court of Directors and took a
prominent place in politics. His son Charles, after taking high
honours at Cambridge, entered Parliament in 1811, and became
successively Irisn Secretary, President of the Board of Trade,
President of the Board of Control, and Colonial Secretary. In 1836
he was created Lord Glenelg. Robert also distinguished himself at
Cambridge, and entered Parliament in 1818 ; he was Judge- Advocate-
General and subsequently Governor of Bombay (1834-8). He was
knighted in 1834.

VOL. V 1

2 LONDON CHAP. I.

1834. Ministers. The question was, who should move
it. Hume was mentioned, and Littleton spoke
to him about it. It was thought better to in-
elude all Privy Councillors holding office in the
motion, and Hume went upstairs to write out
the words of the motion. In the meantime
comes in Sir James Graham, and Littleton and
Huskisson thought he would be a better man
than Hume to make the motion. They gave him
the hint, and he gave notice immediately.

Nothing contributed to give a tone to the
country at the ensuing elections more than that
motion, and Graham's speech.

Littleton is a cleverer man than I thought
him to be.1 He talked to me with indifference
of his O'Connell exploit, and said too much was
made of it. He does not apprehend mischief in
Ireland.

My other neighbour, Spring Rice, told me of
William Pitt's alarm at the mutiny at the Nore.
When he heard of it he exclaimed, " Venit summa
dies," etc. The man to whom he said it told Eice
the anecdote.

1 Edward John Littleton (1791-1863) was appointed Irish Secretary
in 1833. In this capacity he sent for O'Connell and informed him in
strict confidence that, in the Irish Bill about to be introduced, the
powers to prevent public meetings would not be renewed. After he
had given this assurance the Cabinet determined to renew their
clauses. When this became known in the House of Commons,
O'Connell attacked Littleton furiously for breach of faith, and
Littleton retorted on O'Connell his breach of confidence. In the end
Littleton resigned his office. He was created Lord Hatherton in
1835.

CHAP. I. FIRST RAILWAY JOURNEY 3

FROM DIARY. 1834.

August 18. — My little girls, Julia and Chattie,
dined with us. Pretty things, so young! almost
babies 1

August 20.— Left Easildon for Scotland, with
my wife and her eldest little girl, Julia. We
slept at Leicester, and then went by Matlock
to Burton and Edgemoor. We stayed a day
with my brother-in-law, Trevor Spencer, and
then went by Derby to Manchester. Thence,
in an hour and a half, we went by rail to Liver-
pool. It was my first experience of a railroad,
and it would be in vain to attempt to describe my
sensations. The effect was overpowering. My
little child, as we sat quietly in our carriage, was
not the least alarmed, nor seemed sensible of the
prodigious speed of our movement. Indeed, it
\\as only when a train met us, and we passed each
other at the rate of 40 miles an hour, that I was
aware of our wonderful velocity. On the whole,
I think I was more affected by this display of
human power than by any other work of art, the
Simplon Road or Menai Bridge not excepted.
There was something awful, bordering on the
terrific, in our moving through the last tunnel,
but all portions of the work seemed performed
with such perfect accuracy as to dimmish much
the sense of danger.

FROM BOOK, " RECOLLECTIONS."

We had an opportunity of comparing the slow

4 GLASGOW CHAP. I.

1834. progress of the old mode of travelling with rail-
road speed; for we could not get farther from
Kendal than Lockerby, 75 miles, and no more.
Nor did we travel faster, the next day, over the
wild Dumfriesshire hills and glens, by Douglas
Mill and Hamilton to Glasgow. I found that
great town much more increased in size, since
1823, than Liverpool. It seemed the superb
capital of West Scotland. Mr. Ewing, M.P. for
it, sent his card and a note to say he would wait
on us next morning, with Dr. Cleland, the historian
and cicerone of Glasgow. They were good enough
to accompany us the next day to some of the
wonders of the place, and Dr. Cleland presented
me with a handsomely bound folio, containing his
account of Glasgow.

FROM DIARY.

August 27. — I saw Mr. Monteith's Manufactory
for printing cottons, etc. Since the great strike of
the operatives, females have been employed, and
they appeared to me to be fully capable of the
work. They were guarded for some time by
soldiers. The young women had a healthy, happy
look, decently dressed, but without shoes and
stockings. They will work in a temperature of
15° in winter and walk into the snow with
impunity. They had flannels given to them, but
preferred their own light dress. The discharging
process is most beautiful. We saw a contrast of
French and Scottish patterns. The former more

CHAP. I. TOUR IN SCOTLAND 5

minuto and pretty, the latter more bold and 1834.
striking. One for retail, the other wholesale.

FROM BOOK, " RECOLLECTIONS."

We went to the fine Exchange Rooms, where
we met Lord Harrowby. He asked me whether
the Lord Chancellor was going to Dunrobin ; for,
if he was, he (Lord II.) should alter his plans, as
he preferred accommodation for himself and
family, to the company even of a Lord Chancellor.
A great crowd accompanied us to our carriage,
and there was no hissing, or other symptom of
dissatisfaction, to which I had been so long accus-
tomed in England that I was not a little surprised
to find a member of the Government so well
received ; and the magistrates of the city paid me
a complimentary visit, as they called it; at any
rate they were very civil. After dining with Mr.
Ewing, we went to Cumbernauld, the seat of
Admiral Fleming.

From Cumbernauld we went by Stirling and
Crieff to Taymouth Castle — a happy meeting it
was for us in those days — and I liked the noble
residence far more than I had done eleven years
before. Lord Chancellor Brougham arrived the
next day, and was received with salutes of cannon
from the fort on the hill, and pipers on the lawn.
He was in high force and very amusing. We had
a large party : Lord Tankerville and his son, Lord
and Lady Fitzharris, Lord Camperdown and Lord
Duncan, Sir George Warrender, and the young

6 TAYMOTJTH CASTLE CHAP. I.

1834. Due de Richelieu,1 a French Conservative, a rare
character at that time. He was no admirer of any
revolutionary personage, and he had a long argu-
ment with Lord Brougham on the conversational
powers of Talleyrand, which he rated lower than
they are usually allowed to be. Brougham ranked
him in the very first class of talkers. The con-
troversy was kept up with great spirit on both
sides.

The Due de Richelieu's sagacity may not have
been much at fault when, in a long talk with me,
he insisted that the Due d'Orleans, the son of
Louis Philippe, would never be on the throne of
France. Who would be, he could not guess.
Brougham and I had very little private talk,
except about the Times. He seemed resolved on
war to the knife with Barnes, the editor, and said
that Goldsmid had offered £30,000 to set up a
rival newspaper. Lord Brougham had a habit of
sighing deeply, apparently without knowing it,
which every one remarked. He was accompanied
by his wife's daughter, Miss Spalding, who seemed
half worn out by hard travelling.

Brougham left the Castle on the 1st of Septem-
ber ; before going away, he gave me an inscription
which he had made for the statue of Watt. He

1 The Due de Richelieu (1766-1821), a collateral descendant of the
Cardinal, was a devoted adherent of the Bourbons, and during the
Napoleonic regime he entered the service of Russia. He returned
with Louis XVIII., who on his death in 1821, in recognition of his
distinguished services to France, revived his title in favour of his
nephew Armand Francois Odet-Chapelle de Jumilhac, Due de
Richelieu (born 1804), who is mentioned above.

CHAP. I. DEER-STALKIXG 7

told me that he had been two years employed upon 1834.
it, and did not like it at last.1

After the Lord Chancellor had left us, I joined
a party to go to Aberfeldy and see the Moness
Falls, a beautiful mountain cataract; and I as-
sisted in carrying Lady Fitzharris (Tankerville)
to the waterfall — a pleasing burthen.

On September 3 Lord Breadalbane, Lord Ossul-
ston, and -my self set out early for the Deer-forest,
a distance of forty-five miles, through the wildest
Highland scenery. The lodge was on the bank
of Loch Tulla, a mere hut in those days, and it
\\as not easy to imagine anything more desolate
in id lonely than the shooting quarters of this great
chieftain. Except in the cottage itself, there was
no sign of life; but we were comfortably boarded
and lodged, and the morning after our arrival we
took to the hills. I had seen a good deal of
mountain life in Switzerland, but that did not
prepare me . for deer-stalking, and I confess I
did not much like sitting in a swamp, under a
cold rock, when bathed in perspiration from toil-
ing up the mountain-side. We saw some harts
at a distance, and slid down a water-course to
get nearer to them. At last we stopped ; and
as they would not approach nearer to us, we
both rose and fired at a hart who was the nearest
to us. The herd threw up their heads, stared
for a moment at us, and then bounded away ; a

1 The statue, by Chantrey, is in Wandsworth Church, and the long
inscription will bo found in Siuiles's " Life of Watt"

8 AT TAYMOUTH CASTLE CHAP. I.

1834. hart appeared to be hit, and shortly afterwards
a hunter cried out, " There he lies dead ! " And
down all the foresters ran, skipping from rock to
rock at a pace which frightened me. I came down,
and found the hart quite dead. Lord Breadalbane
good-humoured ly gave the shot to me, and I did
not dispute his award, and walked down the
mountain to Loch Tulla, not a little pleased
with the doubtful exploit.

On this occasion I made two other attempts at
deer-stalking, but without success ; but I landed
a salmon on a fishing excursion with Lord Ossul-
ston, and then, returning to the cottage, break-
fasted and went to the hills, where I fired at a
hart, and was told that I had shot him; but as
Lord Ossulston had fired at the same time, I
had little doubt to whom the glory, such as it
was, belonged. The party left the Black Mount
and returned to Taymouth Castle, where I found
my official bags and many letters, which kept me
employed for a day or two.

FROM DIARY.

September 7. — I had many long conversations
with Lord Ossulston on politics. He is a very
agreeable, intelligent young man, twenty-four
years of age, a sort of Liberal-Conservative. An
accomplished sportsman, sings very prettily, M.P.
for Northumberland.1 When at Paris his De

1 His father, the 5th Earl of Tankerville, was married to Armande
Sophie Leonie Coriaaudra, Duchesse de Gramont.

CHAP. I. LORD BREADALBAM- 9

Gramont's relations would not permit him to go 1834.
to Louis Philippe's Court, which lie lamented.

September 12. — I went out shooting on the
moors with young Mr. Baillie, Lady Brcadal-
hane's brother,1 and after dinner saw the charming
lady herself, perhaps for the last time. She is
a most interesting creature, and bears her mis-
fortunes— want of health and the want of an heir
to her husband's vast possessions — like an angel.

Hiding to Moness Falls, Lord J3readalhane pointed
out to me a small laird's house, and said, " There
lives my heir and successor." He is, however,
much annoyed at the will left by his father,
depriving him of every shilling of which the late
lord could dispose. He told me he had not the
least reason to suppose his father intended such
a deed. He believed the old gentleman was in-
duced to it by the love of accumulation of what
•0,000 untouched for twenty years would
amount to, as he found a calculation of what
£300,000 would be, with notes of admiration
ailixed to it, all in his father's handwriting. His
rent-roll is £30,000 a year, and after twenty
years he will have the income of the accumu-
lated sum, but in the meantime he has no ready
money for improvements. He is a shy but a
determined man.

1 John, 2nd Marquess and 5th Earl of Breadalbane, had succeeded
his father this year. He married Eliza, daughter of George Baillie,
of Jerviswood, and died in 1862, when the marquessate became
extinct and the earldom passed to his cousin, John Alexander Gavin
Campbell, of Gleufalloch, Perthshire.

VOL. V 2

10 DALMENT CHAP. I.

1834. Before leaving Taymouth I took a good deal
of pains to persuade Lord Breadalbane to attend
the dinner to be given at Edinburgh to Lord
Grey. He said that he thought he had done his
duty in promoting reform of Parliament, and
might fairly retire. "What!" said I, "at
thirty-eight years of age ? " Lady Breadalbane
agreed with me, and he made up his mind to go
to Edinburgh the next day.

FROM BOOK, " RECOLLECTIONS."

On September 13 I left Taymouth Castle. The
piper, who had taken a fancy to my pretty little
girl, played a farewell as she was lifted into our
carriage. We changed horses at Amulree, Crieff,
Stirling, Falkirk, and Linlithgow, and arrived at
Craigie Hall, the seat of Mr. Hope Vere, in good
time the same afternoon.

The next day I walked over to Dalmeny Park,
the seat of Lord Rosebery, on the banks of the
Firth of Forth, and the day after that I beheld
the triumphal entry — for it was a triumph— of
Lord Grey into Edinburgh. On the whole, it
was the finest sight I ever witnessed. Lord
Durham and the Due de Richelieu, both of them
somewhat fastidious judges, confessed it was mag-
nificent. Lord Grey, with his star and ribbon
and his bald head, stood manfully erect in the
midst of countless multitudes, moving slowly over
the North Bridge, preceded and followed by the
city trades with their Reform banners. The whole

CHAP. I. DINNER TO LORD GREY 11

ceremony was well described in the journals of 1834.
the day. What struck me most was the good
order and the peaceable demeanour of the people.
Lady Grey and Lady Durham, and Ladies Georgina
Grey and Mary Wood, and two brothers, saw their
father's triumph. I watched them and witnessed
their delight. To him it was worth a life of toil.

I went in the afternoon to the dinner given to
Lord Grey, in a pavilion which had been erected,
in ten days, for the occasion. It was a superb
structure. Fifteen hundred and sixty sat down
to a cold dinner, and after dinner others came;
so that, with the ladies in the gallery, the number
present amounted to two thousand six hundred.
The utmost order prevailed, and when Lady Grey
came into the gallery the company all rose
and received her with cheers. I saw the tears
come into Lord Grey's eyes. I was sitting within
four of him, and watched him. The Duke of
Hamilton was to have presided; but he was
labouring under a complaint in his eyes, and Lord
Kosebery took the chair for him, and filled it
well. Lord Grey was on his right hand, Lord
Chancellor Brougham on his left ; Ellice, Aber-
cromhy, and Cutlar Ferguson. When Lord Grey's
health was given, the cheers were overpowering.
He made an admirable speech. "Lord Brougham
and H.M.'s Ministers " was the next toast. It was
very well received, and there was much cheering,
and cries of " No Times." Brougham made a bad
speech; talked of his hands being clean, and was

12 EDINBURGH CHAP. I.

1834. waggish about the " nothings " accomplished by
the Reformed Parliament. He uttered two or
three civilities about Lord Grey, which were
neither very cordial nor cordially received by the
object of them. He sat down amidst thunders
of applause and waving of handkerchiefs.

Lord Durham's health was given, and very well
received indeed. He made a patriotic speech, and
lectured the Government about unref ormed abuses,
which told well ; but I, knowing something more
of the facts than he chose to tell, could scarcely
refrain from smiling. Abercromby, Sir John
Campbell, and Lord-Advocate Murray, made
tiresome speeches. The health of friend Ellice
was proposed, and well received. I saw that my
name was down for a toast, and spoke to Lord
E/osebery, requesting that no notice might be
taken of me ; but Brougham wrote a note, telling
me the guests were resolved to hear me, and Sir
James Gibson Craig said the people of Edinburgh
had a claim upon me. I thought I had escaped,
but Bannerman, M.P., proposed my health, which
was as well received as any ; and the speech I
made in reply was thought so much to the
purpose that there was great shouting and
cheering, and partial Lord Breadalbane told me
it was the best speech of the evening. Sir John
Dairy mple, M.P. for Edinburgh, wrote me a note,
saying that my speech would have secured my
election for the city. Alluding to Lord Durham's
advice to Ministers, I assured him that " I took

CHAP. I. HOLYROOD HOUSE 13

it in good part." Those present understood me 1834.
well enough, but the London journals took occasion
to say that I agreed with Lord Durham as to the
necessity for further reforms, which I, most
certainly, did not; although Lord Durham himself
was not at all displeased, and told me I had made
a capital speech. I mention these things because
Edinburgh had some claims upon me, and I was
pi i vised at thinking that I had not disappointed
the expectations of my Scottish friends.

FROM DIARY.

September 17. — Went with Mr. R. Mackenzie,
and Mr. Burn, Crown Architect to Holyrood
J louse, to look at best mode of improving that
r«»yal palace, and to restore it and the park to the
Crown in spite of the Duke of Hamilton, and
Lord Iladdington, who have shamefully encroached
on both. The desecration of the Royal Chapel is
truly disgraceful. I resolved to do what I could,
but possibly I shall find the noble lords too hard
for me.

September 18.— We left Edinburgh and went to
Oxenford Castle, the seat of Sir John Dairy mple :
a beautiful place with a most attractive host and
hostess.

September 19. — I walked with Sir F. Dick
Lander, to see the new road and archway over
the valley, a truly Roman work, by Telford, com-
pleted in 1831. During this visit Sir John
Dalrymple showed us a letter, written by a rela-

14 TESTER HOUSE CHAP. I.

1834. tion of his, on Scott's " Bride of Lammermuir."
The story is true of a young lady of the Stair
family. She was called the Bride of Baldoon. The
bridegroom was wounded, not by his wife, but by
a rival suitor — a Lord Rutherford. The scene of
the story was in the West country, and not in the
East. The writer of the letter was indignant at
the liberty taken with facts by the great novelist,
and thought the honour of the Dalrymple family
compromised by the romance. I thought that the
said family had very little right to complain, for,
if Lucy was crazy, it signified little whether she,
or some one else, stabbed Baldoon.

FROM BOOK, " RECOLLECTIONS. "

From Oxenford we went to Tester, and stayed
there until September 25. Whilst on this visit
I enjoyed myself much. I wandered about, with
my wife as a guide, to the scenes of her childhood,
where she pointed out to me the trees she had
planted, and took me to the ruined chapel close to
the mansion, the burial-place of her family. She
showed me the grave of the last Hay buried
there; a shudder came over me, and I hurried
her away. Lord Tweeddale mounted me on a
pony, and rode with me to the top of Lammer
Law. At one of the woods in this wild country I
met a Melton acquaintance, Lord Elcho, and had
a gallop with his foxhounds. I have not the
heart to record more of this visit — times are so
changed, and we are so changed with them.

CHAP. I. WHITTINGEHAME — BIEL 15

From Tester we went to Whittingehame, the seat 1834.
of Mr. Balfour, M.P. for the county ; and here I
saw what wealth can do. All was his own crea-
tion— house, gardens, and park-like grounds —
which, I was told, were a turnip-field twenty
\ears ago. I walked ahout his beautiful gardens,
and down the valley of the Whittingehame Water,
a lovely dell, the pride of the place. Mr. Balfour
lent me a horse, and I had another gallop with
Lord Elcho. The sport was very poor, hut the
country very heautif ul ; deep woody ravines and
wild moors, with noble prospects of land and sea.
These exercises did not prevent me from attend-
ing to the business of my office, and on most days
I despatched oil ice- boxes and wrote many letters.
At that time the members of the Cabinet had
circulars sent to them containing extracts from
Foreign Office and Irish despatches— a very con-
venient holiday practice, which has since been
discontinued. My circulars then contained no
ne\\s ol importance, except the expected death of
Don Pedro and the succession of Donna Maria.

From Whittingehame we went a short distance
to Biel, the residence of Mrs. Hamilton Nesbit
Ferguson. I was much struck with this place —
its handsome mansion, and Italian terraces, over-
spread with the plants of an Italian sun. I had
seen nothing like it in Great Britain. It was one
of the estates of the great Nesbit property, and
belonged formerly to the Belhaven family. There
is a good portrait of the famous Lord Belhaven

16 BIEL HOUSE CHAP. I.

1834 here. Old Mr. Nesbit, father of Mrs. Ferguson,
found a stone here with this inscription upon it :

" 1707, THE YEAR IN WHICH SCOTLAND WAS BE-
TRAYED AND RUINED." Sir George Warrender
proposed, as a comment on this text, " The Nesbit
rent-roll now £33,000 per annum, five times
greater than it was in 1707." Warrender men-
tioned this to me himself, at Lochend, to which he
removed on September 30, and enjoyed a most
agreeable visit of three days, in company with
Lord Gillies 1 and Lord Chief Justice Doherty,2
two of the most agreeable men of their time, I
should say. Doherty looked as young as ever,
and, after the ladies were gone, he and the Lord
of Session kept us in a roar of laughter, with very
little pause.

Warrender was very kind and hospitable, and
had a great deal to say, particularly about the
men with whom he had lived, Canning being the
chief ; but he verged on the absurd and talked
too much of himself, and how he was employed
and treated by Canning. He said he was sent by
Canning to Copley to complain of his Phillpott's

1 Adam Lord Gillies was a Scottish Judge of Session (6. 1760 —
d. 1842).

1 John Doherty (1783-1850) was made Lord Chief Justice of
Ireland 1830. In 1825 O'Connell describes him in a letter to his
wife as " that long blockhead Dogherty," but Curran, in his sketches,
writes of him as " six feet two inches, and every inch a very estim-
able person." In 1829, while he was still a Member of Parliament,
his action in the case of the Doneraile Conspirators caused an open
breach between him and O'Connell. O'Connell attacked him
in the House of Commons, and Doherty replied in a masterpiece of
polite venom

CHAP. I. MANDERSTON 17

speech, and added that it was at that very time 1834.
arranged that Copley should be Lord Chancellor
if Canning became Premier. Can this be so ?

I had afterwards a good deal of talk with Lord
Gillies on Scottish politics, and found that he did
not at all agree with Moncrieff and the Church
party. Dohcrty spoke to me of O'Connell with
more of awful respect than I ever heard from any
other man ; and he mentioned that he once over-
heard two old women, who had been in court
during one of his great speeches, which had pro-
cured the acquittal of a manifestly guilty man —
one of them said to the other, "It is no use
talking ; he is just a God Almighty upon earth."
"And this," said Doherty, "I believe to be the
public feeling." We had a jovial time of it with
the Judges — pheasant-shooting in the morning,
and sitting rather too late, particularly Lord
Gillies and myself, after dinner.

From Lochend we went to Manderston, the
residence of our friend General Maitland, from
whom, and his excellent old wife, we had a most
Friendly reception. At Manderston there was a
portrait of Pope, by Richardson. The painter,
having some quarrel with the poet, gave the
picture to Mr. I. Calverly, of whom he had made
a portrait at near a hundred years of age. This
gentleman was great-grandfather of Mrs. Mait-
land.

Prom Manderston we travelled over the hills,
twenty miles, to Thirlstane Castle, in Lauderdale

VOL. v 3

18 LORD LAUDERDALE CHAP. I.

1834. — a strange old building, like a French chateau,
built by Duke Lauderdale. The old Earl, and his
good lady and her two boys, as she called them
(fifty years old I believed them to be), gave us
a most hearty reception. I enjoyed Lord Lauder-
dale's conversation much. He was then past
seventy-six years of age, a little broken in body,
but his mind as active as ever. He talked very
freely of some of the past generation. He gave
me a strange account of Lord Lansdowne, the first
Marquess, and mentioned that, when the Bank
stopped payment, Eox, and Grey, and himself,

went to speak with Lord L on the subject,

and all they could get from him was, " There is
nothing for it but publicity and perspicuity."
Now I confess I did not see the folly of this
speech. On the contrary, I thought it a very
sensible exposition of the real state of the case ;
and, if my host had lived a little longer, he would
have seen that those who directed the monetary
affairs of the great nations agreed with the
doctrine so decried.

I cannot omit what Lord Lauderdale told me
of Brougham. This extraordinary man, in very
early life, came to Thirlstane with a letter from
Lord Buchan requesting a day's shooting for his
young friend. Lord Lauderdale said in reply,
that he was going to Edinburgh ; but that
Brougham was welcome to shoot. Brougham
answered that Lord Buchan had mistaken his
request. What he wanted was permission to drive

CHAP. I. ANECDOTES OF BROUGHAM 19

Lord Maitland in a pony phaeton round the 1834.
Scottish Western Circuit. Lord Lauderdale
thought Brougham mad, and declined to trust
his son, a boy thirteen years old, with him.
Accordingly Brougham started from Thirlstane
in his phaeton alone. At Ayr he behaved so
strangely that no one knew what to make of him.
At Dumfries he got extremely intoxicated, sat
up all night, and was carried to the race-course
next morning in a sedan-chair, dressed in his wig
and gown. No wonder that, when he returned
to Edinburgh, his friends shut him up for six
weeks. This extravagance was so notorious a
fact that Cockburn, Solicitor-General, pleading
the other day in a question of sanity, said that
it did not follow a man was mad because he did
odd things. A great man, in high office, had
gone to a race course in a sedan-chair ; but he was
not mad. Now I thought Cockburn almost as
mad as Brougham, for alluding to such an
instance.

Lord Lauderdale said Brougham began public
life under the auspices of William Pitt, who sent
him on a mission into Germany and the north
of Italy. In one article of the Edinburgh Review
he attacked Lord Lauderdale's financial opinions,
and, in another article, he praised Lord Chatham's
letters to Lord Camelford. He bound up the two
articles together, and sent twelve copies of them
to Lord Mul grave. Lord Lauderdale found them
all at the Foreign Office, when Lord Grey sue-

20 CHARLES JAMES FOX CHAP. I.

1834. ceeded to Eox there. He burnt eleven of them,
and kept one copy, which he has got now.

Prom this sample of imperfection, Lord Lauder-
dale turned to Charles Fox, of whom he said that
he was not only the most extraordinary man he
had ever seen, but also the best man. He had,
at the same time, a way of talking which ought
not to be taken too literally ; for example,
Lauderdale heard him once say to Lord Holland,
" Now, my young fellow, I will give you a piece
of advice : never do anything yourself, which you
can get another man to do for you." " A maxim,"
said Lauderdale, "on which Eox acted himself."
Lauderdale worked very hard for him, and never,
except on one occasion, was obliged to explain
a subject twice to him.

CHAPTER II.

FROM BOOK, "RECOLLECTIONS." 1834.

October 12. — We took leave of Lord Lauderdale
and his agreeable family, and returned to London.

On October 15, I had an audience of His
Majesty, and we had some general talk. The
good King was very kind; he promised me a
prescription for the gout, which had been service-
able to George III.

October 16. — This was to me a memorable day ;
for, as I was sitting quietly at home with Lady
Julia, I was roused by the intelligence that the
House of Lords was on fire. As the care of the
public buildings belonged to my department, I
lost no time in going to St. James's Palace. The
whole building in front of Old Palace-yard was in
flames, and the fire was gaining ground towards
Bennett's Tower every instant ; only a few soldiers
and policemen were present, and three or four
engines. A short time after more fire-engines
came, but I thought the firemen were lamentably
deficient in the knowledge of the best way to
extinguish the flames.

I was with Melbourne, who was as usual very

cool, and now and then inclined to be jocose. He

21

22 LONDON CHAP. II.

1834. could not help laughing when a man ran up to
me and said, " Sir John, we have saved King
Charles's warrant "—meaning the original death-
warrant, as if that document was particularly
interesting to me.

The crowd behaved very well; only one man
was taken up for huzzaing when the flames in-
creased. I heard nothing of the exclamations
recorded by the Standard newspaper, but I believe
that one weaver did say, " This comes of making
the poor girls pay for their children " —alluding
to the new Poor Law. A few persons attributed
the fire to design, but, on the whole, it was
impossible for any large assemblage of people to
behave better.

FROM DIARY.

October 17. — I dined at Holland House. Lord
Melbourne and Whishaw the only strangers. We
had a long talk on patronage, and Lord Melbourne
said he thought the Whigs greater jobbers than
Tories, and more grasping. He contradicted Lord
Holland and my lady in the most amusing
manner.

Lady Holland told me she would give a proof of
her love of me by asking a favour of me, viz. a
place for Henry Webster.

October 18. — Went to St. James's and saw H.M.
I cannot say he was much affected by the calamity,
rather the reverse. He seemed delighted at
having an opportunity of getting rid of Bucking-

CHAP. II. BURNING OF PARLIAMENT HOUSES 23

ham Palace ; said he meant it as a permanent gift 1834.
for Parliament Houses, and that it would be the
finest thing in Europe.

At 3 o'clock the King and Queen came in two
plain carriages and went over the ruins of the two
Houses. A crowd of people pressed in and went
round with them. I think their Majesties went
rather too near to the shaking walls, but they
were quite fearless.

The King looked gratified as if at a show, and
perhaps by the prospect of getting rid of Buck-
ingham Palace. Just before getting into his
carriage he called the Speaker and me to him and
said, " Mind, I mean Buckingham Palace as a
permanent gift ! mind that ! "

PROM BOOK, " RECOLLECTIONS."

On Saturday, October 25, I visited our Colonial
Secretary, Mr. Spring Rice (since Lord Mont-
eagle), at his villa. I saw some books in the
library which had belonged to Lady Mary Wortley
Montagu. In some of the books were notes in
the handwriting of " the charming Mary Montagu."
In Fielding's " Amelia " was this note : " Inferior
to himself, superior to most others."

November 11. — Note from Ellice that Lord
Spencer died yesterday.

yoc<>iiib<>t' 14. — Dined at Holland House. The
Chancellor, Mulgrave, Abercromby, and his wife,
Master of the Rolls. The talk of Pope and John-
son ; Brougham was unjust to both.

24 LONDON CHAP. II.

1834. Lord Holland told me some profligate sayings
of George Selwyn's, whom he knew when a hoy,
a formal man in a hag-wig and sword ; he hated
the Whigs, hut liked Charles Pox. He had a
house at Marston, where Charles I. had escaped.
George III. came to visit it; and Selwyn, al-
though a most ahject flatterer of that King, said,
" It is curious my house has heen visited hy two
kings, and both lost their heads." George III.
had recently been mad. Some one, who over-
heard him, laughed, and Selwyn exclaimed,
" A-hem ! I'm glad you like it — I'm glad you
like it " — his usual phrase.

November 15. — The news came this morning
that the King had taken advantage of Lord
Spencer's death to dissolve the Government.

At a Cabinet meeting Lord Melbourne told us
all that had occurred. The King was firm in his
belief that Lord Althorp's elevation to the House
of Lords could not be repaired, and, therefore, the
Administration could not carry on the affairs of
the country. Under these circumstances, the King
wrote, it would not be fair to ask Lorcl Mel-
bourne and his colleagues to continue in office.

Thus ended the last Cabinet meeting of the
second Reform Administration — dismissed without
a complaint, and, almost, without a pretext — at
the risk of great public calamity; but, perhaps,
fortunately for themselves, before those who
expected too much from them saw cause for
disappointment. Eor my own part, I was happy

CHAP. II. LORD MELBOTJKNK 25

to have belonged to them. They appeared to me, 1834.
at least the majority of them, honourable and
good men, really anxious for the welfare of their
country, and determined to obtain it by wise and
bold measures. My knowledge of Lord Mel-
bourne has made me think better of politicians.
I think him one of the most straightforward,
sagacious, disinterested men I ever knew. His
whole conduct in this closing scene has been
beyond all praise. Abercromby, who has also
gained much upon me, confessed to me that he
had never hoped to see such a Minister.

Justice will be done to us. We agreed to wait
quietly until we were superseded ; and to tell the
truth, viz. that we were dismissed, and did not
resign, assigning as a cause what the King had
declared to be so — viz. the removal of Lord
Althorp from the House of Commons.

November 17. — J. Russell showed me a letter
from Lord Althorp, who called the dismissal " in-
conceivable folly," but a great relief to him ;
meaning, I suppose, that he should not be pes-
tered with applications to join the Government.
The Duke of "Wellington is all three Secretaries of
State. Government in abeyance, waiting for Peel.

November 21. — Brougham took leave of the
Court of Chancery to-day in a short and well-
timed speech, but no man said, " God bless him."

November 21. — The Times and Tory papers are
trying to make it appear that there has been so
much shuffling amongst the late Cabinet Ministers

VOL. v 4t

26 LONDON CHAP. II.

1834. that the dissolution was only hastened by the
King. A postscript to the Quarterly Review *
states circumstantially several lies to that effect,
and the Times quotes it and calls it a statement
from authority. I have no doubt it is from the
Duke of Wellington, who is in possession of the
minutes of the conversations between the King
and Melbourne, and also of Melbourne's letter to
the King. He has shown them to several friends
not so scrupulous as himself, and to these persons
must be attributed the deviations from fact. The
pretext for the dismissal was certainly the Irish
Tithe Bill, for, after hearing Lord Melbourne's
explanation of that measure, the King said, " As
a Protestant King, I can never consent to that " ;
and to this may be added, that His Majesty at
that time had taken a very great dislike to his
Lord Chancellor.

November 26. — I drew up an answer to the
Quarterly Review contradicting their assertions
respecting the differences in the Cabinet, and it
was published in the Morning Chronicle next day.

1 The " postscript " in question was attached to an article on the
Personal History of Louis Philippe, written by Mr. Croker, and in
the course of it it is stated " that the Cabinet has been dissolved by its
own internal and irreconcilable dissensions ; and Lord Spencer's
death has only effected in November, that which the most sanguine
of the Cabinet hoped to have postponed to January. In all this
there was not — and could not be — any concert, much less any
intrigue, between the King and the Conservative party ; and we
believe we may assert that the retiring Ministers confess that his
Majesty was not acting under any other influence, or with any other
views, than those which were naturally and obviously suggested by
his communications with Lord Melbourne himself."

CHAP. II. RUMOURS AND REPLIES 27

November 29.— Lord Melbourne has been making 1834
a speech at Melbourne saying that he has not been
" personally aggrieved." This renders it the more
necessary to contradict the article in the Times.

Lord Durham arrived. He is sulky and import-
ant, and says the turn-out is come at a lucky time,
when the public have a man to look up to — viz.
himself !

December 1. — A letter from Burdett states
shortly that he is about to address the electors
" disapproving of all the proceedings now going
on." He is a strange man, certainly failing in
his intellects, yet he is one of the best, if not
the very best, politician I ever knew. The electors
would certainly choose me upon his retirement,
but I do not like to afford even the appearance
of displacing him, so I forgo that which would
otherwise be a great triumph for me, and I think
useful to the good cause.

December 5. — Lord Durham told me to-day
that he thought worse of human nature every
day. The natural consequences of disappointed
vanity !

Lord Melbourne has been speaking out decidedly
at Derby, and has contradicted the monstrous
fables invented to damage the late Government
as to the cause of their dismissal. The conse-
quence is that the Conservative Journals begin to
find that Lord Melbourne is not the very superior,
superfine gentleman which they have hitherto
represented him to be.

28 LONDON CHAP. II.

1834. December 9. — Peel arrived at last, and he has
accepted the Premiership.

I saw the Hollands. They talk as if this were
a mere party struggle : a question of Whig or
Tory ascendancy.

December 23. — Dined at Lord Holland's. Lady
Holland in the evening made a great complaint of
her poverty, and said to me that the Duchy just
kept them afloat. Now that was gone, she re-
marked she had only two entrees ! !

December 26. — I dined with William Linley,
who told me an anecdote of Sheridan.

Sheridan was going in a stage-coach to Stafford.
A fellow passenger said he was proceeding to that
place in order to assist in opposing Sheridan, the
greatest scoundrel in the world, etc. Sheridan
took no notice at the time, but happening to see
a parcel which informed him of the name and
profession of the other, he began to talk of
lawyers, and said that solicitors were excellent
people in general but some were bad, and he knew
one Williams, the greatest rascal unhanged. On
which the passenger burst into a fury, and said,
" Zounds, sir, do you mean to insult me ? I am
that Williams." "Well, sir," said Sheridan,
" and do you mean to insult me ? I am that
Sheridan. " The attorney was sensible enough to
see the rebuke, and to take it as he ought, and
the two were friends the rest of the way.

December 30. — This day Parliament was dis-
solved ; now comes the struggle !

CHAP. II. VISIT TO NEWSTEAD 29

January 5, 1835. — I was re-elected for Netting- 1835.
ham without opposition.

Whilst at Nottingham I went over to Newstead,
and saw the alterations made by Colonel Wildman
in the Abbey and gardens. I slept in a room
which had no roof to it in my day ; but that
AVIIS twenty-six years ago. Wandering about the
garden, I looked for the clump of trees on
Annesley Hill, "the peculiar diadem" of Byron's
" Dream. " It was not to be seen, and I heard
that Mr. Chaworth had cut it down — Colonel
Wildman said, for spite.

The Colonel told me a story of a poor deaf
and dumb crazy woman, who used to frequent
the Abbey garden, and sit there for hours, with
a volume of Byron in her hand. She lived in
one of the farmhouses on the property and paid
her little rent punctually. She had no inter-
course with the Colonel, nor any of his family,
until one day, when she put a letter into his
hand containing an account of the failure of some
relation, on whom she depended for subsistence.
Wildman was preparing to make some inquiries
about her when he learnt that she had abruptly
left the farmhouse, with her little bundle in her
hand and dressed in her usual white gown. The
next news he heard of her was, that she had
been run over by a cart in the streets of
Nottingham, and killed on the spot. She had
frequented the Abbey garden for some years. A
sad story, and true.

30 BROCKET — WOBURN CHAP. II.

1835. FROM DIARY.

January 17. — The papers have been publishing
my Nottingham speech and commenting on it.
The Standard reviles me as an atheist and an
assassin and what not. I am proud of making
the rascals so angry!

FROM BOOK, " RECOLLECTIONS."

January 23. — Lord Melbourne invited P. Thomp-
son and myself to come to him at Brocket Hall.
We went there, and had some excellent pheasant-
shooting in the morning, and some useful dis-
cussion on our position after dinner. I found
Lord Melbourne, in his own house, just such a
person as I expected — most satisfactory in every
respect.

January 26. — Left Brocket and went to Woburn
Abbey. It was one-and-twenty years since I
visited this princely mansion. Coming into the
drawing-room, I saw it crowded with young men
in red coats. I was introduced to the Duchess,
a formal lady, I thought, considering all things.
Lord Melbourne came, also Lord Auckland ;
Chantrey ; the Tavistocks, young Lord Charles,
M.P. for the county, with his lovely wife. The
good Duke himself was most kind and hospitable,
friendly and attentive to all.

January 28. — We looked over the farm establish-
ment— most splendid. We were joined by the
Duchess, and Landseer, the great artist, whom I
have known intimately for almost half a century,

CHAP. II. MARQUESS WELLESLEY 31

and whose works, as well as himself, I admire 1835.
more every time I see them and him.

FROM DIARY.

February 1. — The elections all over. The Tories
have returned about 275, hut they have not kept
out those Cabinet Ministers. Palmerston is the
only member of the late Government whom they
have excluded.

February 3. — I called to see Lord Wellesley at
his request. He talked to me of the Duke of
Wellington, without any reserve, as a great officer
but no statesman at all, and he instanced the mode
in which he defended Catholic Emancipation. His
confession that it was the fear of civil war which
induced him to grant that boon was a premium
upon future agitation. Whatever he thought,
he ought not to have put forward such a cause.

The Marquess told me a saying of his own : that
lie trusted his brother Arthur would plant his
foot on the necks of those who were fools enough
to help him to power, and then they would find
his heel as hard as his heart 1

I was much pleased with the vigour and liveli-
ness of the old man !

February 11. — Dining at Burlington Street this
evening I saw a funny thing : as Lady Holland
went out after dinner, Lord Granville pulled some
papers out of his pocket and gave them to her.
She kissed him.

February 19. — I went down to Westminster, and

32 LONDON CHAP. II.

i83f. was much pleased with what I had some right
to call my new temporary House of Commons.

February 20. — Abercromby, who has been
chosen Speaker in place of Sutton, appeared to-day
in a court-dress and a tie-wig, and read the usual
speech in a firm voice. When taking the oaths
he lifted up his hands and eyes to me as if
imploring pity for his condition.

FROM BOOK, " RECOLLECTIONS."

February 24. — The King went down to open
Parliament in person. The crowd was so great
that I did not get into the House until after the
King had gone.

I had at this time an opportunity of forming
some judgment of the grandees of our party, for
on Saturday, March 8, I dined at the Duchess of
Kent's, and met the Duke of Norfolk, the Duke of
Cleveland, Lord and Lady Lansdowne, the Speaker
and Mrs. Abercromby, Lord and Lady Rosebery,
Lord Melbourne, Lord and Lady Ilchester, Lord
John Russell, and Mr. Fox Maule. The young
Princess was in high spirits, and looked very well.
The Duchess herself was, as usual, most pleasing.

I have a record of the discreditable defeats, and
successes as damaging as defeats, which Peel and
his Cabinet sustained during this ill-omened
portion of his career. Night after night it became
apparent that his Ministerial days were numbered.
The language used on both sides of the House

CHAP. II. DEATH OF LADY JULIA HOBHOUSE 33

became so intolerable that the Speaker was 1835.
obliged to interpose his authority.

I have been visited during my long life with
only two great calamities. The first afflicted me
at this time. I had hoped against hope that my
wife might be saved; but all the bad symptoms
of her insidious malady recurred with so much
violence, as to leave no room for even a faint hope
of her recovery. I resolved, however, to go about
the usual business of life, so far as it was compatible
with that anxiety which left me but little power
of reflection on any but my domestic dangers !

FROM DIARY.

April 3. — My most admirable and devoted wife,
the pride and treasure of my heart, died at four
o'clock. The scene will never be effaced from my
memory. I am so stupefied by the blow that I
seem to have no feeling. I pray God to preserve
my senses. I have given orders to have her laid
next to my father ; and there will I be laid also.
It relieves me to talk of my loss, but I cannot
shed tears. God forgive me, and permit me to see
her hereafter.

April 9. — I passed all these days of misery at
home, my brother Edward and Lord Thomas Hay
being with me, endeavouring to divert me by
talking of the events of the day.

This day I sent my little children to Tunbridge
Wells, and prepared to follow them the next day.

VOL. v 5

34 LONDON CHAP. II.

isas. April 15. — Repeated letters from P. Thompson
and Ellice recalled me this day to Berkeley Square.
There I found a desolation in my once happy
home, such as made me, if possible, more wretched
than in the first hour of my calamity.

FROM BOOK, " RECOLLECTIONS."

April 17. — Peel resigned on Wednesday, April 8,
and on Saturday the King asked Lord Melbourne
to form a Government.

I accepted the office of the Board of Control, at
the same time telling Lord Melbourne that his
Cabinet was not so Liberal as I thought. He
replied that some people had told him it was too
Jacobinical.

The next day we were summoned to attend a
Court at St. James's. "We found the ex-Ministers
waiting in the Throne-room, and spoke to several of
them. Hardinge remarked that the two pleasantest
days in the life of a politician were that on which
he accepted, and that on which he left, office.

The King saluted us coldly as we entered the
Council-chamber ; and, after the usual ceremonies,
we retired. Thus was formed the second Mel-
bourne Cabinet, and H.M. was obliged to swallow
the bitter pill of his own compounding.

Surely some one ought to have been responsible
for all that had happened, and all that might have
happened, since the 15th of the last November —
an Administration broken up, a Parliament dis-
solved, a new Parliament elected, with all the usual

CHAP. II. AT THE BOARD OF CONTROL 35

chances of disturbance ; the new Government in a 1835.
minority the first day of the session, and unable to
appoint their own Speaker, or address the Sovereign
in the terms chosen by themselves ; in fact, the
Monarch and the Ministry exposed and degraded ;
yet no one reproved, no one punished, not a single
step taken to prevent the recurrence of a similar
danger and disgrace.

FROM DIARY.

April 27. — I dined alone and read a great mass
of Indian papers in the evening : the only mode of
preventing a depression which is almost intolerable.
At times I think I cannot bear my misfortunes,
and yet in the world I go on like the rest.

April 30. — I called this day on Lord Wellesley,
who told me he considered himself to have been
cruelly and treacherously used, because he was not
appointed Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland, and was
sent to an office for which he was as much fit as
for a housemaid's place, viz. Lord Chamberlain.

May 1. — Labouring hard on Indian business. I
am much more interested with the work of my
present office than with that of either of my other
offices.

May 8. — Called on Lord Durham and found him
very much softened. He expressed an earnest
wish to be employed under our Government, as a
means of regaining his old friends. He said that
he saw in the present Government the best chance
for good measures. His tone was quite different

36 LONDON CHAP. II.

1835. from what it had been formerly, and I could not
help believing him sincere.

We are in a position anything but encouraging.
Our leader and our other Secretary of State are
out of Parliament, the King is against us, the Court
also, a majority of nearly a hundred Peers also.
The Army, the Navy, the Church, the law, the
squires, the magistracy, against us. A majority
of the upper classes in every part of the Empire
against us. To balance this we have a precarious
majority of about 30 in the House of Commons ;
and, having these prospects, we meet Parliament
on Tuesday next without having either of our two
great Reforms, in the Irish Church and the Corpora-
tions, decided upon in any one essential particular.

We are bold men, but Peel was bolder, for he
met Parliament in a minority. I should have,
however, no apprehension if my colleagues were all
like Thomson, Howick, and Duncannon, and, I
may add, Russell, although he is too much led by
Lord Holland and Lord Grey.

May 11. — I dined with a great friend of the
party, and one who has been a successful farmer
of a great estate. I mean Mr. Coke, of Norfolk.

Mr. Coke is eighty-two years of age, and as hale
and active, both in mind and body, as he has been
for many a long year. His young wife, Lady Anne
(a Keppel), has brought him five children — four
boys and one girl. It would be difficult to find
a more signal instance of the highest moral worth
rewarded with the greatest worldly prosperity.

CHAP. II. LAMBETH PALACE 37

A worthy prelate, the Bishop of Norwich, who 1835.
is more than ninety years of age, made Mr. Coke
a present of a mourning-ring the other day, and
said to him, " We shall soon meet in heaven ;
and, whether this is given to you now or a feu
months hence, matters not."

Mr. Fox was a great deal at Holham in the
shooting-season, and Mr. Coke told me of him
what I was somewhat surprised to hear — that he
seldom opened a hook during these visits, except
on a Sunday, and then his reading was very
desultory. Mr. Coke told me that he hardly
ever heard Mr. Fox speak harshly of any man.
Some one happening to say to him, " You must
allow Sir John Lade was a stupid man," Fox
replied : " I allow no such thing ; he was a
d — d clever fellow, the best driver of a four-
in-hand in England ; and a man who does what
he attempts very well cannot he called stupid."

May 16. — I dined at St. James's Hotel with
Lady E. Hope Vere and her two daughters. One
of them sang some Scottish songs beautifully.
She — at least, the upper part of her face — is like
my ever-beloved wife, her aunt.

May 30. — I dined at Lambeth Palace for the
first time in my life. It seemed to me by far
the most princely establishment and entertainment
I ever saw in my life. The worthy, mild Arch-
bishop l played the host admirably. We had
the Duke of Newcastle and many other red-hot
1 Dr. Howley.

38 LONDON CHAP. II.

1835. churchmen, besides Bishops and clergymen in
abundance.

June 3. — Lord Palmers ton had an audience with
H.M. on the affairs of Spain. The King said he
would never consent to an alliance, offensive and
defensive, with France. The old gentleman is
full of prejudices. I saw a letter from him to
Lord Glenelg, full of abuse of the Canadian
Radicals, and talking of Messrs. Hume and Roe-
buck and that tribe. I mentioned it to Russell,
and said that Sir H. Taylor 1 ought not to pen
such language. Russell said one was like the
other, and that when two fools get together the
result was generally of the same kind.

June 4. — I had a long conversation with Lord
Melbourne, in the course of which I said I thought
Lord Grey knew nothing of the inevitable result
of the Reform Bill. " You are quite right there/'
said Lord Melbourne ; "he did not ; he thought
it just a measure to satisfy the people at the
moment, and nothing more."

June 5. — Lord John Russell brought forward
his Corporation Reform Bill. Every one to whom
I spoke seemed delighted with our measure, and
well they may be ; it is a good measure — simple
and sound, bold, judicious, and safe. At least,
so I think, and, in a selfish view, very advan-
tageous for our friends and our prospects.

1 General Sir Herbert Taylor was successively secretary to the
Duke of York, George III., Queen Charlotte, and William IV.
Died in 1839.

CHAP. II. CHATHAM AND THE MILITIA 39

June 17.— At this time great efforts were made
by the French Cabinet to induce our Government
to send a squadron, in conjunction with France,
to the coast of Spain.1 Our King objected much
to the flags of the two nations being seen together.
He also did not like to detach any part of our naval
force far. He has but one alarm, which is Russia,
and even Melbourne himself seemed to think Russia
might possibly send a fleet into the Channel and
sweep our seas. To me this is chimerical, but
Melbourne seems to have some information.

FROM BOOK, " RECOLLECTIONS."

Jane 25. — We were employed this day in the
House, most unprofitably and disagreeably, in
debating the case of the Dorsetshire labourers.
I tried to prevail on Russell to remit the sen-
tences of these misguided men, and he would
have done this ; but the Cabinet were against
him, and he could only get their consent to a
remission of punishment for four out of the six.

June 27, D.N. 49. — In Downing Street Russell
told me of a singular conversation that he had
had with the King about the Militia. H.M.
said that Lord Chatham introduced the Militia
Bill against the wishes of George II., but that
George III. liked the Militia; and, added H.M.,
so did he, and he should disapprove of any plan

1 On the death of Ferdinand VII. in 1833, the Carlists made an
attempt on the throne, and the Regent Christina was supported
by the Quadruple Alliance, which assured to the Christines the
support of France.

40 LONDON CHAP. II.

1835. that rendered the staff of it less prepared for
effective service. Russell said the people and
the Parliament did not care about foreign politics,
and thought any measures for defending England
unnecessary. " Very true, my lord," said the
King ; " and that is what I call penny wise and
pound foolish/' II. M. then went on to speak of
Russia, and said that he had heard there was an
army of 100,000 Russians ready for embarkation
in the Baltic ; and he added, " I do not know
how you feel, my lord ; but I own they make
me shake in my shoes."

Russell told the King that he had no fear of
French intervention, but that he thought the
French Government unstable. "Yes, my lord,"
said the King, "and that is because they have
not an honest man at the head of it, and the
Ministers intrigue. There is this difference be-
tween England and France : here we may differ
on certain points ; you and I may differ ; but we
all of us mean well, and have but one object.
I have my view of things, and I tell them to
my Ministers. If they do not adopt them, I
cannot help it. I have done my duty."

On Monday, June 29, came on the threatened
attack on my department, for revoking the ap-
pointment of Lord Heytesbury from one of the
most important offices in the joint gift of the
Crown and East India Company, which Sir Robert
Peel, even though the Government was in its last
agonies, had contrived to bestow upon him. He

CHAP. II. WILLIAM IV. 41

had the largest majority that the Melbourne 1835.
Government ever obtained, and, meeting Lord
Stanley the next day, he said to me, " I could
not vote against you ; you made a d — d good
speech in a d — d bad cause."

"We heard of a strange speech made by H.M.
in Council, when Sir Charles Grey l was sworn in
as Commissioner to Canada. H.M. would have Sir
Charles recollect that Canada was " won by the
sword, and that he would never give up the Royal
prerogative in that province ; that he would never
permit the Legislative Council to be elective ;
that he, the King, said this, although others might
say otherwise, and although some had dared, in
his presence, to hold contrary language" — alluding
to Grant. When interviewed by Lord Melbourne
on the subject, H.M. owned he had been wrong
in talking of his confidential advisers before those
who were not members of the Cabinet ; but he
was in a state of great excitement, and angry,
particularly at Lord Durham's being appointed
to the Russian Mission.

Lord Palmerston told me that, at table the
other day, two Bishops being present, some one
talked of Lord John Russell's health, on which
H.M. said, " If you will answer for his death, I
will answer for his damnation."

This was not all we heard of the Royal dis-

1 Sir Charles Grey (1765-1835) had been a Judge of the Madras
Supreme Court and Chief Justice of Bengal He had just been
appointed as a Special Commissioner to Canada.

VOL. V 6

42 LONDON CHAP. II.

1835. inclination to us ; for, on Saturday, July 11, in
Downing Street, Lord Melbourne addressed us as
follows : " Gentlemen, you may as well know how
you stand "; and, pulling a paper from his pocket, he
read a memorandum of a conversation between the
King and Lord Gosford, after the review, the day
before. The King said to Lord Gosford : " Mind
what you are about in Canada. By G — d ! I will
never consent to alienate the Crown lands, nor to
make the Council elective. Mind me, my lord,
the Cabinet is not my Cabinet; they had better
take care, or, by G — d! I will have them im-
peached. You are a gentleman, I believe. I
have no fear of you ; but take care what you do."
We all stared at each other. Melbourne said,
"It is better not to quarrel with him. He is
evidently in a state of great excitement. " And
yet H.M. had given his assent in writing to the
second reading of our Irish Church Reform Bill,
which showed that these outbursts were more
physical than signs of any settled design ; although
there were some of us who thought it was intended
to drive us, by incivilities, to resign our places,
and thus make us the apparent authors of our
own retirement.

It was clear to me that, if we continued in the
Government, it would be entirely owing to the
good sense and good manners of our chief, who
knew how to deal with his master, as well as with
his colleagues, and never, that I saw, made a
mistake in regard to either ; and I must add that,

CHJLP. II. WILLIAM IV. 43

when a stand was to be made on anything con- 1835.
sidered to be a vital principle of his Government,
he was as firm as a rock.

Such was the case at this time, when Lord
Radnor made his motion for dispensing, in certain
cases, with subscription to the Thirty -nine Articles.
On the division our friends in the Lords had only
57 votes to 169 ; but Lord Melbourne made a
speech, which was of more service to his Govern-
ment, in the country, than twenty majorities in
the Lords. The spirit, the eloquence, the sincerity,
the deep feeling of every word, made a great
impression on all who heard, and all who read,
what he said.

The instructions which he had agreed upon as
the basis of Lord Gosford's Administration in
Canada met with much disfavour by H.M. He
broke out violently against the use of certain
words, saying, " No, my lord, I will not have
that word ; strike out * conciliatory ' — strike out
' liberal ; ' ' and then he added, " You cannot
wonder at my making these difficulties with a
Ministry that has been forced upon me."

On the following Wednesday, however, H.M.
said he approved every word of the instructions ;
remarking that he was not like William III., who
often signed what he did not approve.

Such was this kind, good man, generally most
just and generous, but, when irritated, scarcely
himself. He was more sincere than suited his
Royal Office, and could not conceal his likings or

44 LONDON CHAP. II.

1835. dislikings from those who were most affected by
them.

Our Corporation Bill was read a third time on
July 20, and passed amidst loud cheering. Thus
one of our principal pledges was nobly redeemed.

FROM DIARY.

July 25. — Lord Lansdowne told me that II. M.,
in a speech at Caen Wood, gave an account of his
progress to Hampstead, and said that he lived in
the hearts of his subjects ! He asked where the
Duke of Wellington was, and the Duke of Cum-
berland was about to call him up. " No, no,"
said the King, " let him stay at the bottom of the
table. When he is there, I know he will make
you change your glasses ! "

If His Majesty was occasionally a little in-
cautious in his talk, he had to listen to language
much more imprudent than his own. One day
the " Nulli Secundus " l dined at St. James's, and,
on the King giving the health of Colonel Conyers
and the Essex Militia, Conyers said that H.M.
had now no foreign enemies against whom his
Army and Navy might distinguish themselves;
but that, if his Militia had to charge the Eadicals,
they would be the first to draw the sword, and the
last to sheathe it. The King held down his head,
and did not say a word. All the company had the
grace to appear ashamed.

1 The "Nulli Secundus" is the dining-club of the Coldstream
Guards.

CHAP. II. THE CORPORATION BILL 45

PROM BOOK, " RECOLLECTIONS."

July 31. — Lord Auckland has accepted the offer
of going to India. He had an audience of H.M.
to-day, who was very civil to him, and said that,
" although they differed in politics, yet he was an
honest man."

FROM DIARY.

August 3. — The great debate on our Corporation
Bill in the Lords.1 Melbourne distinguished him-
self much, particularly when he denounced the
resistance of the Lords as an act of suicide ; but
we were beaten by 124 to 54.

The more violent were for rejecting the Bill at
once, the next for hearing evidence, so that the
Duke of Wellington was glad to compound for the
evidence, although he had given assurance to
Melbourne publicly that he did not wish to delay
the Bill by such a course. To this Melbourne
alluded in his reply, when he said, " He would
never again enter into engagements with those

1 " The Lords made some important alterations in the provisions
relating to the collection of tithes, and rejected the appropriation
clauses. In vain did Lord Melbourne warn them that, if they per-
sisted in dealing with the Bill in this way, it would be abandoned by
the Government, and that the consequence of that abandonment
would be, not only that the clergy, unable to collect their tithes,
would be reduced to beggary, but also that the Government would be
compelled by law to take proceedings against them in the Exchequer
Court of Ireland to recover from them £650,000, which had been
advanced to them from the public funds. Undeterred by these
warnings, the Conservative majority persisted in the course they had
decided to adopt, and the bill was withdrawn. The Government did
not execute the threat they had held out in order to induce the
Lords to accept the appropriation clause." — SIR W. MOLESWORTH.

46 LONDON CHAP. II.

1836. who either wanted the power or the will to keep
them." The Duke looked very black, and pulled
his hat over his eyes. Some one told Melbourne
this. He said, " I did not mean to go near the
wind."

In fact, Melbourne was very angry, and what
the papers call excited, which the Tories interpret
" drunk." Melbourne announced his intention to
sit out the inquiry and never leave his post, much
to the dismay of the Tories, who were fools enough
to expect he would resign.

August 5. — I dined at Sir R. Ferguson's, and
met the famous Mrs. Somerville,1 a most pleasing,
unaffected person, not handsome, but agreeable in
her looks. She did not talk much but upon her
own subjects.

September 7. — After many conferences and dis-
cussions between the Lords and Commons, on our
Corporation Bill, it was at last resolved to adopt
some of the Lords' amendments and reject others.
The Lords were much disappointed that we were
not more violent.

It appears Peel has been excited by Melbourne
calling his "a clap-trap Administration." Ce
n'est que la vdrite qui blesse." Perhaps Mel-
bourne might as well have not used the word, but
it applies.

Thus was completed this second great measure

1 Mary, daughter of Sir William Fairfax, and wife of William
Somerville. The most distinguished lady-mathematician and
astronomer. Her principal work is that on the Connection of the
Physical Sciences. She died in her ninety-third year, in 1872.

CHAP. II. STRANGE SPEECH OF THE KING 47

of the Whig or Liberal Ministry ; and I am happy 1835.
to have had a share in it.

September 9. — At a Council held to-day occurred
a most remarkable scene. When H.M. was to say,
"Approved," to the reduction of the Militia staff,
he burst out : — " My Lords, nothing should induce
me to assent to this, but for two reasons ; one is,
that I do not wish to expose those Colonels who
have deserted their duty, and done so much to
injure this constitutional force ; the other is, that
I am resolved the system shall be put upon a
better footing the next session of Parliament.
My Lords, I am an old man — older than any of
your Lordships — and, therefore, know more than
any of you. In 1756 George II. had, as I have
now, what was called a Whig Ministry; that
Ministry originated a Militia Bill, to frame a
constitutional defence of the kingdom. George II.
had not the advantages which his successors
possessed. He opposed the Bill ; and he was
seconded by certain persons, in different counties,
some from one motive, some from another, perhaps
subserviency ; but his Ministers wisely persevered,
and carried their measure ; since which time this
great force has been kept up as it ought to be,
and shall be, in spite of agitators in Ireland, and
agitators in England; for, my Lords, I dread to
think what might be the consequences if Russia
were to attack us unprepared. I say never will I
consent to the destruction of this force, and, early
in the next session of Parliament, whoever may be,

48 AT BOWOOD CHAP. IT.

1835. or whoever are, Ministers, I will have the Militia
restored to a proper state. I say this, not only
before my confidential advisers, but before others
[C. Greville and two or three others of the house-
hold], because I wish to have my sentiments
known."

Such was the substance, and, in great part, the
very words, of His Majesty's harangue. We
looked at one another. Lord Melbourne was very
black, and very haughty. I thought he would
have broken out.

Lord Melbourne then read the Speech very dis-
tinctly, and gave it to the King, who said, " I
approve it much ; be so good as to keep it for me
until to-morrow."

September 10. — I went to the House of Commons
to see the King prorogue Parliament. H.M.
looked overwhelmed with his robes and crown ;
and read his Speech rather feebly, until he came to
" Gentlemen of the House of Commons," which
he roared out so loudly as to make us all laugh.

November 6. — I passed the greater part of my
holidays at Corsham, but I spent a couple of days
at Bo wood. When I was a boy I used to think
what wonders there were at Bowood; what a
palace the house ; what a miracle the master, the
old lord. Now everything seemed pleasing enough
— no more.

Lord L. told me that he and Lord Holland had
seen the Duke of Somerset dance in the House of
Lords. Some evidence had been given in the

CHAP. II. DINNER AT THE PAVILION 49

Queen's trial as to the lascivious dancing. The 1835.
Duke was in the gallery, and, supporting himself
on the rail, actually began to cut capers, and to
practise his conception of what the witnesses had
said. All in absence of mind !

FROM BOOK, " RECOLLECTIONS."

December 4. — This day I dined at the Pavilion.
There were forty-six guests at the royal dinner-
table. Sir W. Freemantle, the Controller, told me
that three hundred mouths were fed daily at the
Palace ; also that last year 36,000 bottles of wine
were drunk. But H.M. keeps within his parlia-
mentary income.

The dinner was not a lively affair ; but I had
the good fortune to sit opposite to Lady Augusta
Kennedy, a lovely woman. In the drawing-room
the King and Queen sat at table with seven or eight
ladies. The maids of honour sat at another table.
The Princesses played at cards. Lord Melbourne
flirted with Mcllle d'Este and Lady Falkland.

We had a Council at St. James's on February 3, 1836.
where the King pricked the Sheriffs. H.M. re-
i IK irked that he supposed the usage was derived
from times when the Kings of England could not
write. The King opened Parliament in person
the next day.

At H.M.'s desire I went to see him, and found
him in very good humour. He talked of all sorts
of things, and told me that his intercourse with
many men in that closet had given him an insight

VOL. v 7

50 LONDON CHAP. II.

1836. into human nature. H.M. broke out into a tirade
against the Scots generally, as being " too
national." Amongst other topics he touched
upon the advantage of practical knowledge, and
mentioned that thus it was that he had the best of
the argument when talking with Lord Glenelg,
and had set him right fifty times on colonial
questions. I could not help laughing outright at
this, and the King was not angry.

February 26. — We had a debate on the Spanish
War. Peel made an insolent speech against
Palmerston, to whom he seemed, at that time, to
have taken a general dislike. Russell said he
relied on me to answer him, and, although I had
not heard much of the debate, Peel was so unfair
and so violent that I thought I would try my
hand. I told Peel that his genius ivas too ponder-
ous for a joke, and so it was. He invariably
failed in that attempt.

On March 8, at the House of Commons, I sat
from a little after seven until three in the
morning. After some skirmishing, Sir James
Graham made a most furious onslaught against
Roman Catholic domination in Ireland ; I should
have liked to answer him, but was prevented by
a recent difference.

At this time we had to consider a proposal to
guarantee a loan to Spain. George Villiers, our
Minister at Madrid, urged this measure, and was
supported by Palmerston and Lord Holland. The
rest of us were averse from interference in Spain.

CHAP. II. THE KING AND LORD MINTO 51

Lord Melbourne was very uneasy at these pro-
ceedings, and told one of us that he could not
sleep at night for thinking on them ; but our
Foreign Secretary was not easily deterred from
a favourite scheme, and showed symptoms of that
indomitable perseverance, which, since those days,
has carried him triumphantly through so many
difficulties.

I went to the Levee on "Wednesday, April 13.
His Majesty, passing the circle, stopped opposite
to Lord Minto, and said, " Your lordship need
not propose it to me; I never will consent — I
never will. I like speaking plainly." Lord
Minto bowed, and said, "Very well, Sir." I
hrard afterwards that this related to a rumour
that the sailors' pensions were to be lowered to
the scale of the soldiers' pensions. The King
saw Lord Minto in the closet afterwards, and
repeated this. Minto told him that he knew
nothing of any such intention ; but that, as to
the soldiers' pensions, the scale was settled in
1833, with the full concurrence of the Commander-
in-Cliief. H.M. replied " that he doubted this."
At a Council afterwards, however, H.M. was in
a state of strange excitement. On hearing some
order read relative to the Colonies, of which he
had not before heard, he exclaimed, two or three
times, " Postponed — postponed," and wrote the
word clown opposite the order, with "W.R." I
was near laughing, and so was Lord Holland, who
sat opposite the King.

52 LONDON CHAP. II.

1836. April 25. — I had a tete-a-tete with Joseph
Hume,1 who good-humouredly gave me an account
of his early Indian career. He told me he
owed his success to his facility in acquiring the
oriental languages. I should not have guessed
that he had possessed that facility ; hut I had no
doubt that he believed he did.

FROM DIARY.

April 30. — I dined at the Royal Academy,
Somerset House, for the first time in my life.
A very brilliant and striking spectacle. There
was not the slightest allusion to politics.

I had a few words with Lord Anglesey in
allusion to our short political connection, and he
said, " I believe you, as well as myself, are an
idle man now." "Why, not quite," and I told
him the fact, on which he begged my pardon,
and said he had lived out of the world. This
comes of never speaking in Parliament. Eut
were it otherwise, what is the use of the " life
in other's breath " ?

May 1. — Cold as Christmas ! Dined at Devon-
shire House — 32 at table, and, as E. Byng remarked,
4 Garters and 5 or 6 Dukes. I sat next to John
Russell, and had some pleasant talk with that
excellent man.

1 Joseph Hume, when twenty years old, went out to India in the
E.I.C.S. service as surgeon and interpreter ; he returned in 1807,
and was elected as a Tory for Weymouth before he became Eadical
M.P. for Aberdeen, and subsequently for Middlesex, which he
represented at this time.

CHAP. II. FACTORY CHILDREN 53

FROM BOOK, " RECOLLECTIONS." 1836.

Lord Stanley told me to-day he had no desire
for office, and wished us to keep our places. I
replied that he had the oddest way of showing
such inclination, and reminded him of his com-
paring us to " the cords, the ladder, or the
hangman rather?" "Oh," said he, "that was
my Hotspur speech."

On Monday, May 9, the Government received
a check in the House of Commons, on a subject
to which I had previously paid a good deal of
attention. P. Thompson, very indiscreetly, and
without consulting the Cabinet, proposed an
alteration in the Factory Bill, allowing children
from twelve to thirteen years of age to work
twelve instead of eight hours in a day. His
chief argument was, that no less than 30,000
children would be discharged from the mills,
unless this permission were given. Lord Ashley
opposed him, and stated very truly that it was
unfair to repeal one of the most efficient clauses
of the Government Bill of 1833. The debate was,
to me at least, very disagreeable. We carried
Thompson's motion only by two : a cruel measure.

The opposite party, having failed to defeat
Lord Melbourne in Parliament, had recourse to
scandalous gossip, and propagated a rumour which
ended in a court of law.1 I was convinced there
was no real foundation for the charge, for Lord

1 This case is fully recorded in " The Life of the Hon. Mrs.
Norton," by Miss Perkins.

54 LONDON CHAP. II.

1836. Melbourne wished to engage the services of
Sergeant Wilde ; but Wilde had a general Re-
tainer, which prevented him from taking a brief
on the other side. Melbourne said to Wilde,
" I am sorry you cannot hold a brief for me ;
for I give you my honour, as a gentleman, that
this charge is false." Wilde told me he had
not the slightest doubt that Lord Melbourne
spoke the truth.

FROM DIARY.

May 13.— I went to the Queen's Ball. The
Prince of Orange and his two raw sons there.
The Princess Victoria danced.

May 15. — There was an eclipse to-day. I saw
it very distinctly, even with the naked eye, and
showed it to my little girls through some smoked
glass in the Square gardens. The shade and a
coolness were very perceptible ; but I saw no
planet, nor did the birds retire to roost.

General Gascoyne told me to-day that the King
had spoken to him in very proper terms on the
Melbourne business ; and called it an " under-
plot." H. M. said he wished the Duke of
Cumberland and others would not come to him
and abuse his Ministers personally; as for their
politics, that was another matter.

May 24. — Went to Whitton. Desolate and
melancholy in the extreme. A thousand painful
recollections crowded over me. I go there no
more !

CHAP. II. LORD GREY*S TEMPER 55

june 4. — Dined at Whitbread's, Chiswick. I 1836.
took Lord Lansdownc with me. Lords Grey,
Tavistock, and many others were at the table,
besides the partners.

Lord Grey was in high dudgeon, and though
surrounded by old friends and late colleagues and
connections, hardly spoke a word, and never asked .
a man to take a glass of wine with him. Lans-
downe told me, amongst other proofs of his
intractable temper and foolish pettiness, that he
had complained of not being asked to speak on the
Irish Bill. Lord Lansdowne added that he was
angry at not being what he might have been,
Prime Minister, and could not forgive Lord
Melbourne his success. If Melbourne had failed
he would have been his strenuous supporter.
Now he does nothing but grumble and growl.
For my own part, I must say that the more I see,
the less I think of him; and am surprised how,
by mere fluency of speech and arrogance of
in .inner, this really inferior man has contrived to
lead a great party, and to connect his name im-
pcrishably with the most splendid triumphs of
British legislation.

June 11. — We were all in great good humour
to-day at the Cabinet, and after the business was
over, we talked of indifferent matters. Amongst
others, Lord Holland enlightened us on the subject
of Catholic confessions. He told us that Napoleon
asked Charles Fox what he thought of the
Concordat, saying he might speak out, as Cardinal

56 LONDON CHAP. II.

1836. Caprara,1 who was near, would not mind about
what he said. Fox objected to the celibacy of the
priests, but Napoleon said he could not have done
away with that unless he established Protestantism.
Melbourne observed truly that, if you have con-
fession, you cannot have a married priesthood.

FROM BOOK, "RECOLLECTIONS."

Saturday, June 18. — I took my children to
Lord Breadalbane's house in Park Lane, to see a
review of about 4,000 troops, a very pretty sight.
Their Majesties, accompanied by the Prince of
Orange, were present. The Duke of Wellington
rode in front of his own regiment, the Grenadier
Guards, and saluted the King. He was much
cheered ; it was Waterloo day. My children, in
the balcony of Lord Breadalbane's house, were
much admired. They did look very pretty, to
say the truth.

June 20. — At the House to-day we had a debate
on reducing the stamp duty on newspapers to a
penny. Roebuck made a very good speech, which
a member, called Kearsley, designated as dis-
gusting; and, on being called to order by my
friend Methuen, who was a little elevated, ex-
claimed, " Paul, Paul, why persecutest thou me ? "
Whereat, to my astonishment, the House was con-
vulsed with laughter, in which Graham, Stanley,

1 Cardinal Caprara, born 1733. In 1801, as legate a latere in
France, he signed the Concordat on behalf of Pius VII. He was
afterwards Archbishop of Milan, and in that capacity crowned
Napoleon as King of Italy in 1805.

CHAP. ii. GROTE'S SPEECH ON THE BALLOT 57

and Peel joined most heartily. I thought I was 1836.
almost the only man who did not laugh.

June 22. — This night, at twelve o'clock, the
jury in the Melbourne case returned a verdict in
favour of the defendant. They were scarcely a
minute absent. Campbell treated the charge as
it deserved, and the jury went along with him
during the whole trial. In one or two instances
he tried them rather high, I thought; but he
knew his men, and gained a complete victory.

On June 23 Mr. Grote made his famous speech
in favour of Ballot. I did not consider myself at
liberty to vote for any essential change in the
representative system, after being a party— and an
active party, too — in carrying our Reform Bill ;
but I confessed then, and I confess now, that I
have never heard Mr. Grote's arguments an-
swered satisfactorily. Little interest was excited,
either in Parliament or the country, by this
question.

On June 2G, we were woefully beaten in the
Lords on our Irish Corporation Bill, and at our
next Cabinet meeting Lord Melbourne opened the
proceedings by saying that, under ordinary cir-
cumstances, we should resign our offices ; but that,
as we came in with the declared opposition of the
Peers — and as, at the beginning of this very
session, the Peers had declared against our Irish
Corporation Reform — we knew nothing now that
wr did not know before, and our resignations would
not be justifiable. His opinion, therefore, was,

VOL. v 8

58 LONDON CHAP. II.

1836. that we ought to go on quietly now, and try a new
measure next session.

On Thursday, June 30, there was another con-
ference between the Lords and Commons. The
Peers sat covered, all but the Duke of Wellington,
who read the reasons for dissenting from our Bill.
He stood, and was uncovered ; he faltered, and
looked very old. We then went back to our own
House, and Russell made a good speech, rejecting
the Lords' re-amendments at once. Peel owned
that the two Houses were not in a temper to agree
this year, adding that he would not divide the
House on the question, " for fear of wrong infer-
ences being drawn from the numbers." The fact
was, we had a majority of a hundred present, and
our Stanley told me we had three hundred
members in London.

July 2. — At the Cabinet this day we had some
discussion with reference to the marriage of the
Princess Victoria. It appears the King wrote a
letter to Lord Melbourne, in which he stated his
own wish to be that the Princess should marry the
second son of the Prince of Orange. Lord Mel-
bourne wrote a long letter to the King, decidedly
objecting to this scheme, and stating that, in these
matters, the inclinations of the young lady herself
might disconcert the best-arranged scheme. He
concluded by requesting that the arrangement
might be deferred.

July 9. — I dined at Holland House at a sort of
family party, with Lord and Lady Lilford, Lord

CHAP. II. LORD MELBOURNE'S MISGIVINGS 59

Plunket, and Sir Robert Adair, and, of course, Mr. 1836.
Allen. Our talk turned chiefly on the merits and
character of Burke.

Lord Plunket, who knew him, said he was not
quite sane. Allen decried all his works, except
liis earlier, which he said were stolen, as being
gross exaggerations. Lord Holland would not
admit this, neither would Sir Robert Adair, but
Lord Plunket rather agreed with Allen. Whether
the talkers in this dialogue were of capacity to
discuss the merits of such a man as Burke, I could
not pretend to decide ; but I was much interested
in listening to their conversation. Holland House
is, after all, the only place which I frequent, of
which the conversation is worth recording.

I was at the Levee on August 3, and heard
from one of the King's sons that the good old
trriitleman had been assailed on all sides, since
the reduction of our majority to 26. Our resigna-
tion was publicly spoken of, and the day for that
happy event fixed.

Even quiet and courageous Lord Melbourne
Ix'Lran to give way, and told us that he had long
had doubts whether it was right and becoming to
go on with the government in our present con-
dition. There was an immense majority against
us in the Lords, and the English constituencies, so
far as we knew, were against us — the Court
decidedly hostile — and nothing but an insignificant
majority in the Commons in our favour, and even
there it was only on doubtful and unpopular

60 LONDON CHAP. II.

1836. questions that we outnumbered our opponents.
Lord Melbourne said a man must have the patience
of an ass to stand against such odds.

August 10. — A very numerous deputation, headed
by Lord William Bentinck, waited on me at the
India Board, to discuss a proposal for establishing
a steam communication with India. The scheme
met with many and serious obstructions, but was
started at last. I heard no complaints, except
from a very clever friend of mine, who said to me,
" The deuce take these projectors ! Letters come
from India now quite quick and quite often
enough ; I am sure many of them are not answered
yet. What will it be when letters and despatches
come from India once a week ? "

August 20. — I went to the House of Lords to
see the King prorogue Parliament. There was a
great crowd, especially of ladies. The King got
through his part very well, though he could
scarcely see to read ; and, on the whole, all went
off well.

I made up my mind to make a short journey
on the Continent, and accordingly engaged a
courier, and made other preparation for my little
excursion. I wrote requesting His Majesty's
permission for my absence abroad for a few weeks,
and two days after came a civil but a flat refusal
from the King. His Majesty put his denial chiefly
upon the state of affairs in Spain, which, he said,
had caused a conjuncture more critical than any
which had occurred since his accession to the

CHAP. II. BRIGHTON — CHICHESTER 61

throne, and required the deliberate attention of 1836.
all his confidential servants, and the attendance
of all of them in Cabinet .

I called on Lord Melbourne and he told me
that Lord Glenelg had also been stopped from
going abroad. He added that he should not be
much surprised if we were soon turned out, im-
prudent as such a step might be ; for the people
might sympathise with us, and the House of
Commons refuse the supplies. The feeling that
we were ill-treated had given us the majority in
the elections before, and might do the same again.
Lord Melbourne said that, in 1834, the dismissal was
the result of a scheme. Now there was no scheme,
but H.M. was all but crazy. This, added to his
dislike of us, might bring about the catastrophe.

FROM DIARY.

September 16. — I resolved to take a little tour
in England, and went to Brighton, with my brother
Henry, thence to Chichester and Hale, where I re-
mained on a visit to my dear friend, David Baillie.

September 23. — Rode out with Baillie to the
residence of Sir Charles Hulse. His wife was
made by will the heiress to the fortune now held
by Sir Joseph Copley, in consequence of a love
attachment on the part of the owner. She had
the generosity to give up the whole estate, re-
serving only a monied bequest of £20,000 to
£25,000. The Copleys abuse their benefactress
for not resigning the whole, although what they

62 TRAFALGAR HOUSE CHAP. II.

1836. have received from her bounty amounts to £12,000
a year. Baillie added, " I cannot look at her
without veneration." What is to be said of the
wag, Sir Joseph ?

September 25. — I rode over to Trafalgar, and
saw the great brick house in a half-naked park,
entirely stripped by the personal heirs of the
late Lord Nelson ; and the windows nearly all
demolished by the furious hail-storm of last June.
So ruined a record of national gratitude I could
not have expected to find ; but the nation looks
one way and the family another.

I recollected the arrival of the news of the
glorious victory as distinctly as if I had heard
it only the day before, and the dilapidated mansion
and poverty-stricken premises produced feelings
which I will not attempt to record.

I went from Hale to Hindon, Bath, and Chep-
stow, stopping at Tintern Abbey, that lovely ruin !
I thought it looked more fresh than when I last
saw it. I wonder what it thought of me ? It
rained so hard that I could not go out in the
evening, but I read Henry V. and some of the
speeches made me start again, to say nothing of
the inimitable fooling.

September 28. — Went to Boss. The chief in-
terest here made by Pope. The guide-books tell
only of Kyrle l ; yet it is not quite certain that

1 John Kyrle (1637-1724), immortalised by Pope as the "Man
of Ross" for his beneficent charitable works. The Kyrle Society
is named after him.

CHAP. II. TOUR IN WALES 63

more than half of Pope's character of this immortal 1836.
man is not fiction : the fiction of a great poet is
better than the fact of a common man.

I made a little tour in Wales at this time, and
was more than ever convinced that there is no
necessity for going out of the British Isles in
order to behold sublime scenery.

I was much struck with the Menai Bridge,
and gazed at that stupendous work from several
positions with increased admiration ; and felt
proud, not only of my nation, but of my kind.

On October 2nd I went to Kinmel Park, the
seat of Lord Dinorben. There was a large party
assembled to meet the Duke of Sussex and his
w i t'e, Lady Cecilia Underwood. The guest in whom
I took the most delight was Doctor Buckland,
who was an agreeable mixture of sense and
simplicity.

I took particular notice of what he said as to
the probable exhaustion of our great coal-fields,
aud the shameful waste of that material, the true
source of our wealth and grandeur, which is going
on unceasingly at the pit mouths.

October 5. — I left Kinmel, and resumed my
quarters at my Putney Villa, until October 10,
when I returned to London.

I had an audience with the King, who urged
the necessity of watching the western frontier
of India. He then said that George III. was a
good King for Home affairs, but neglected con-
tinental relations. If he had followed Lord

64 BRIGHTON CHAP. II.

1836. Chatham's advice, and disputed America with
Germany, he would not have lost that country.
H.M. added that George IV. attended to Home
affairs and Foreign affairs, hut neglected the
Colonies. " Now," continued the King, " this is
a fine country; but it is nothing without its
Colonial possessions, especially India."

FROM BOOK, " RECOLLECTIONS."

On Monday, November 28, I went to a Cabinet
at Lansdowne House, instead of the Foreign Office.
This was in consequence of the death of Augustus
Lamb, only child of Lord Melbourne — the poor
sickly lad whom I used to see with his mother
in 1812 and 1814. He was thirty years of age.
Melbourne did not affect any grief, but went on
with our business.

November 29. — I went down to Brighton. The
wind blew a perfect hurricane, and I thought the
carriage would be upset going down to Reigate.
On the road I heard that one arch of the Chain
Pier at Brighton had been blown away, and several
houses unroofed by the wind.

In the evening I dined at the Pavilion, but
the ceremony was more dull than usual, although
Sir William Freemantle did all he could to enliven
our end of the table. The evening was intolerably
tiresome, in spite of the Queen's band in the great
room, and an amusing game of chess between the
beautiful Miss Mitchell and the Duke of Saxe-
Meiningen.

CHAP. II. OPENING OP PARLIAMENT 65

Parliament was opened by commission on Tues- 1837.
day, January 31. The King was not well, the
Queen was ill, and the Duchess of Gloucester
was dying.

I went early to the House on Tuesday, February 7.
Russell had already begun his speech on Irish
affairs, and had said that the Administration
would stand or fall by the Corporation Bill now
introduced.

The debate was resumed the next day. Sir
James Graham spoke as if we clung to office
from mean or mercenary motives, and ended by
a violent tirade against Popery. I then spoke,
and used the phrase, " When the happy day shall
come to release us from this thankless servitude " ;
and Peel, in his reply, fastened on these words
as if they announced our speedy resignation, al-
t hough, in fact, they were only a repetition of
what Russell had said in opening the debate.

I heard that what I had said of the happy
day that was to release us from our thankless
servitude had given rise to rumours of our im-
mediate relinquishment of office. The comment
on this from our opponents was somewhat flatter-
ing; for they were pleased to say that I was
honest and truth-speaking, and really did wish
to leave office. This was true so far as the
desire to leave office was concerned ; not so much,
however, from any dislike of office, as because I
did not see how we could retain it now without
loss of character, and consequently of influence.

VOL. v 9

66 LONDON CHAP. II.

1837. February 11. — Passing the evening with Lady
Holland, I found her ladyship not at all pleased
with our threatened resignation. She asked me
whether I thought we were really going out. I
said, " Most assuredly ; c'est le commencement de
la fin" so certain did the event appear to me at
that time.

On February 14 I dined at Lord Holland's.
The company was composed chiefly of artists, all
of them very distinguished — Westmacott, Land-
seer, and Leslie. Lord Holland told us some
amusing anecdotes of Nollekens' miserly habits,
which were accepted by his guests as facts.
Amongst others, he mentioned that this eminent
sculptor asked leave of his barber to take home
with him the paper on which he wiped his razor —
the soap might be useful to him.

February 22. — Walking across the Green Park
to Berkeley Square this day, I met Sir Robert
Peel with a young person under his arm — his
daughter, I presumed. We saluted each other
civilly, and shook hands. Who made the first
advance I did not know, but he apologised very
civilly for giving me only his two fingers, as he
had his gloves and stick in his hand. I said I
hoped the debate would end that night. He re-
plied that he hoped so too ; he was almost killed ;
it was too tiresome. I told him that I did not
wonder at that, considering his constant attend-
ance at the House. After a word or two more
we parted, when he very cordially, and with an

CHAP. II. FRIENDSHIP OF POLITICAL OPPONENTS 67

expression and manner such as I never wit- 1837.
nessed in him either before or since, wished me
"Good-bye."

This little incident might not have been worth
mentioning had it not broken in upon a plan
which I had long acted upon — namely, not to
have a personal acquaintance with an opponent
of whom I was occasionally compelled to speak
with asperity, more particularly with Sir Robert
Ted, whose private manners I understood not to
he agreeable, and who seemed to me to have none
of the generosity which is indispensable in order
to render intercourse with political antagonists at
all endurable. But, at all events, my meditated
speech wus disposed of, for I did not like to say
what I had in store for Sir Robert after our
interview.

On March 11 I dined at the Duchess of
Kent's, and met rather a dull party, except
that it was enlivened a little by the Arch-
bishop of Dublin, who sprawled about at his
case, and joked with Stanley, of the Treasury,
about a pretty little "ooman" — a pronunciation,
he said, which showed that our cockneys knew
how to drop the digamma. Lord Palmerston
arrived, as usual, late, after we had sat down
to dinner. The Princess Victoria looked in good
health. I sat next to her governess, who told
me that H.R.H. knew German, and French,
and Latin, well; and studied much, delighting
particularly in history.

68 LONDON CHAP. II.

1837. PROM DIARY.

March 18. — I had a party to dinner — the Albe-
marles, Mintos, and Mrs. Methuen, Lady Charlotte
Lindsay, Captain Maitland, and the young Eajah
Bam Boy. The Rajah is really a very superior
young fellow. He gave us a very entertaining
account of a walking tour in Scotland. On one
occasion he went up to an old woman who was
working in a field, and asked his way ; the woman
raised her head suddenly, and exclaiming, "The
deil ! the deil ! " ran away.

FROM BOOK, " BECOLLECTIONS."

There was much apprehension at this time of
some impending crisis. I heard from more than
one person that, if a change of Government took
place, there would he a run on the Bank.

On April 20 I dined with a gallant old officer,
who ohtained much repute in the great war.
Lord Lynedoch l was then nearly ninety years of
age ; he heard well, and his eyes served him also
pretty well since they had been couched. He was

1 Thomas Graham, Lord Lynedoch (1748-1843), had a very varied
and adventurous career. He raised the Perthshire Volunteers in
1794, the year he entered Parliament for Perthshire. After acting as
British Commissioner with the Austrian army in Mantua, he took
part in the capture of Minorca, and commanded the troops blockad-
ing Malta. He was aide-de-camp to Sir John Moore in the campaign
of Corunna in 1809. He won the victory of Barossa ; but, owing to
some dispute with the Spanish generals, he resigned his command.
He served throughout the Peninsular War under Wellington, and
commanded the British contingent in Holland in 1814. He was
created Baron Lynedoch in 1814. He had also the reputation of
being a cricketer, and is supposed to have taken part in the first
Scottish cricket-match.

CHAP. II. IRISH TITHE BILL 69

gay and gallant to the ladies of the party, and, 1837.
except a long story or two, betrayed no signs of
old age. I had kept up my acquaintance with
him since his hospitable reception of me when he
commanded our army before Cadiz, and fought the
battle of Barossa.

Our Irish Tithe Bill still gave rise to much
controversy amongst ourselves ; and, as Lyndhurst
and the Duke of Cumberland had made their
appearance, we supposed the struggle was about to
Infill in real earnest. Lord Melbourne, at this
juncture, was of the greatest service, and led the
party in the Lords in a way that showed he was
worthy to lead it. He said nothing that could
induce his audience to believe we were on the eve of
retirement. He declared there was nothing in the
state of the country that called for a change of
Government, or that could prevent any other
Cabinet from being formed, and conducting public
business, honourably and usefully; and he char-
acterised Sir Ilobert Peel's description of the state
of affairs at home and abroad as the humble
labour of a low and creeping policy I Lord Mel-
bourne's vigorous assault on the leader of the
Opposition came with the greater force as he very
seldom indulged in any invective ; indeed never,
except when compelled to repel unjust attacks.

We encountered difficulties now and then, from
the necessity of having two leaders ; one, the
Prime Minister in the Lords — the other, the
Leader in the House of Commons. I reminded

70 LONDON CHAP. II.

1837. Lord Melbourne of his declaration that, so long as
he had a majority in the Commons, he would not
retire. This was after Russell had said something
which indicated either a wish or an intention to
resign. Lord Melbourne's reply to my reminder
was, " True ; but posterior es prior es abrogant "
a very practical and convenient way of getting
rid of any declaration.

After a Cabinet on Saturday, April 22, it was a
great relief to dine with Mr. Powell, and meet (
Mr. Creevey, the Duke of Norfolk, Lord Albe-
marle, Motteux, and Mr. Blunt. Their talk was
of pies and port wine ; and it was wonderful with
what real learning and intelligence these healthy
old gentlemen spoke on these subjects.

April 29. — On this day I dined with the Royal
Academy, at their first Trafalgar Square festival ;
and I felt that their new abode was infinitely
preferable to their old residence in Somerset
House. All the great folks of all parties, except
Lord Stanley, were amongst the guests.

The Exhibition was said to be the best which
had been seen for some time ; but I could not say
that I should have come to that conclusion, from
seeing one of the most conspicuous pictures:
" Ulysses and the Sirens," I thought mon-
strous ; three big, naked women sitting amongst
dead bodies and bones. It was, as Lord Ripon
remarked to me, " Indecorous without being
attractive."

At this time an event occurred which gave me

CHAP. II. SIR F. BURDETT IN OPPOSITION 71

much concern. Sir Francis Burdett came forward 1837.
for Westminster, and gained the election. He
made no secret of his intention to oppose the
Government, and to make common cause with our
declared enemies. Westminster was no longer
the Westminster of Burdett and Cochrane — nor, I
may add, of Burdett and Hobhouse ; and my pre-
diction that it would lose much of its pre-eminence
by the passing of the Reform Bill was fulfilled to
the letter.

On Saturday, May 13, I went to Erie Stoke
Park, of which I had taken a lease. I was
charmed with the grounds and gardens, and
everything attached to that beautiful residence;
hut I little thought then that I should reside
then* one-and-twenty years.

May 19. — We had a majority this evening
against Sir Andrew Agnew's proposal for stopping
the Glasgow railway on Sundays. The best
speech on that evening was made by Mr. Roebuck,
who read part of a chapter from St. Paul's
Epistle to the Romans, and read it so impressively
that he was praised even by Sir Robert Inglis.

May 22. — Sir Francis Burdett delivered a violent
philippic against an amendment on our Church
Kite Resolution. He uttered such High Church
and ultra-Tory sentiments, so directly at variance
with many well-remembered opinions of his, that
our benches re-echoed with ironical cheers, replied
to by vehement applause from the Opposition.
Burdett was as fluent, and as self-possessed, and,

72 LONDON CHAP. II.

1837. rhetorically, spoke as well, as usual ; but he
leaned on a stick, and appeared much exhausted.

I leaned forward and covered my face with a
handkerchief, for I could not hear to look steadily
towards him. He spoke about half an hour ;
amongst other things, he " thanked God there was
another House ! " He ended by alluding to his
own painful position, opposing men for whom he
had a great personal esteem ; and he said that his
life had been a life of sacrifices, and this was one
of them, to which he was prepared to submit.

May 23. — At the Cabinet to-day Lord Melbourne
appeared with a bundle of letters, all of them
referring to that which, unfortunately, was not a
very unusual occurrence in the Brunswick family —
namely, a feud amongst themselves ; and nothing
but the manliness, the good taste, and good feeling
of the Prime Minister could have carried us
through the difficulty.

I have recorded faithfully and fully the details,
as they appeared in the correspondence, of this
family feud ; but I should not think myself justi-
fied in giving them a chance of being made public.
Suffice it to say that the dispute arose from a want
of that which is often felt by persons in all ranks
of life — from sovereigns downwards — namely,
money ; and, in this instance, the differences were
kept alive and inflamed by the rivalry of con-
fidential advisers, who hated each other with a
perfect hatred.

CHAPTER III

FROM DIARY. 1837.

May 26. — Lord Melbourne told us at the
Cabinet to-day that the King's health was in a
very precarious state ; and we agreed that it was
our duty to insist on Sir Henry Halford telling
the King that he ought to take care of himself in
order to prevent fatal consequences.

Melbourne mentioned that, when George IV.
was dying, Halford communicated his danger to
him, and the King received the news with courage
and resignation, and took the Sacrament; but,
getting a little better, he talked of going to
Ascot. After this the King got worse again, but
Halford did not think himself called upon to
repeat hi* warning.

May 27. — I attended a Council at Windsor
Castle— my iirst visit there. The gallery leading
to the andienee-rooms very striking, and the view
from the great saloon over the front inexpressibly
grand. The King in a robe de chambre, looking
very red in the face, and with a feeble voice; but
he went through the ordinary forms as usual, and
spoke to all of us.

May 31. — We discussed our Canada Bill in the
Cabinet to-day, and agreed that the Legislative

VOL. v 73 10

74 LONDON CHAP. III.

1837. Council should be dissolved, and reckon with the
Assembly.

June 7. — Cabinet. Lord Melbourne announced
that the King was very ill. His Majesty could not
walk across the room without support ; his legs
were swollen, and he could not take nourishment.
His Majesty attended at the same time to business,
and Glenelg showed us a copy of his Canada Bill,
with notes in the King's own handwriting. One
of them objected to the dissolution of the Legis-
lative Council, as forming a precedent for a radical
change in the House of Lords.

June 9. — Rumours of the King's death. He is,
however, much the same, and Lord Melbourne
decided to have a bulletin published.

On moving the second reading of the Irish
Tithe Bill, Roebuck made a speech on what he
called the state of the nation, and attacked the
Government in good set phrases, as impeding the
march of reform, carrying no measures, and sub-
mitting to a crawling existence merely for the
sake of office. Russell made a most effective
speech in defence, and we carried the second read-
ing by 215 to 14. So ended the day so anxiously
looked for. The truth is, the state of the King's
health has very much absorbed public attention,
and present politics are forgotten in the prospects
and conjectures relative to a new reign.

June 10. — The following bulletin appeared
to-day :

" The King has suffered for soiree time from an

CHAP. III. DEATH OF KING WILLIAM IV. 75

affection of the chest, which confines H.M. to his 1837.
apartment and has produced considerable weak-
ness, but has not interrupted his usual attention
to business."

Who would imagine from this that H.M. was
thing? and yet I believe he is!

Junr !(>.— Summoned to a Council at Whitehall,
and I thought the King was dead ; but, going
there I found the Archbishops of Canterbury and
York and the Bishop of London had a meeting, to
determine the form of prayer for the King's
recovery. There was no display of feeling on the
part of the m<»t reverend prelates ; but they went
through their work in a business-like manner.

June 18. — The poor King worse ! The inmates
of Windsor Castle were in the galleries the greater
part of last ni^ht, inquiring the latest news of
their master, buoyed up by vain hopes, or de-
pressed by unreasonable fears.

At Church to-day our clergyman gave us the be-
ijinning of the Song of Simeon for a text, "Lord, now
lettest Thou Thy servant depart in peace." I doubt
whether the reverend gentleman meant this mali-
ciously, but I do not recollect anything more pointed
since the famous text on the death of Queen Anne.1

1 'I'h- incident alluded to is, no doubt, that mentioned by Lord
.nhiy in his " lli.-tt.ry of England," but the reference is to Queen
Mary, and not to her sister, Queen Anne.

" The iiiu.>t r.-ti i uable Jacobites re^u-ctcd the sorrow of William and
the memory <.f Mary. But to the fiercer zealots of the party neither
the house of mourning nor the grave was sacred. ... It has often been
and is not at all improbable, that a nonjuring divine, in the
midst of the general lamentation, preached to the text, 'Go, see now
this cursed woman and bury her ; for she is a king's daughter.' "

76 LONDON CHAP. III.

1837. PROM BOOK, " RECOLLECTIONS. "

June 20. — The King died at twelve minutes
past two this morning. About half -past eleven a
Cabinet box came, containing the physicians'
bulletin of the King's death, and a summons to
Kensington Palace. Arriving at the Palace, I
was shown into the ante-chamber of the music-
room. It was full of Privy Councillors, standing
round the long table, set in order, as it seemed, for
a Council. There were nearly ninety Privy
Councillors present — so I was told.

After a little time, Lord Lansdowne, advancing
to the table, addressed the Lords and others of the
Council, and informed them of the death of
William IV. ; and reminded them that it was
their duty to inform Her Majesty, Queen Victoria,
of that event, and of her accession to the throne.
He added that he, accompanied by those who
might choose to assist him, would wait on Her
Majesty. Accordingly, Lord Lansdowne and Lord
Melbourne, then the Duke of Cumberland (now
King of Hanover), then the Duke of Sussex,
together with the Archbishops of Canterbury and
York, and the Lord Chancellor, withdrew through
the folding-doors behind the chair, and saw the
Queen. She was alone ; but Lord Lansdowne told
me that, as they entered the apartment, they saw
a lady retiring into the back apartment. Lord
Lansdowne returned, and informed the Council he
had seen the Queen, and informed Her Majesty of
the death of King William, and of her accession.

CHAP. III. ACCESSION OF QUEEN VICTORIA 77

Not long afterwards the door was thrown open ; 1837.
the Dukes of Cumberland and Sussex advanced to
receive Her Majesty, and the young creature
walked in and took her seat in the arm-chair.
She was very plainly dressed in mourning, a black
M-arf round her neck, without any cap or ornament
on her head ; but her hair was braided tastily on
top of her head. She inclined herself gracefully
on taking her seat.

Soon after she was seated Lord Melbourne
stepped forward, and presented her with a paper,
from which she read her Declaration. She went
tli rough this difficult task with the utmost grace
and propriety ; neither too timid nor too assured.
Her voice was rather subdued, but not faltering,
pronouncing all the words clearly, and seeming to
fed the sense of what she spoke. Every one
appeared touched with her manner, particularly
the Duke of Wellington and Lord Melbourne.
I saw some tears in the eyes of the latter. The
only person who was rather more curious than
a fleeted was Lord Lyndhurst, who looked over
Her Majesty's right shoulder as she was read-
ing, as if to see that she read all that was set
down for her.

Alter reading the Declaration, Her Majesty
took the usual oath, which was administered to
her by Mr. Charles Greville, Clerk of the Council,
who, by the way, let the Prayer-book drop. The
Queen then subscribed the oath, and a duplicate
of it for Scotland. She was designated, in the

78 LONDON CHAP. III.

1837. beginning of the oath, " Alexandrina Victoria,"
but she signed herself "Victoria R."

Her handwriting was good. Several of the
Council, Lord Lyndhurst, the Duke of Cumber-
land, and the Duke of Wellington, came to the
table to look at the signature, as if to discover
what her accomplishments in that department
were. Some formal orders in Council were made,
and proclamations signed by the Queen, who
addressed Lords Lansdowne and Melbourne, with
smiles, several times, and with much cordiality.

The next part of the ceremony was swearing in
the new Privy Council. The Dukes of Cumber-
land and Sussex first took the oath, and kissed the
hand of the Queen. She saluted them affection-
ately on the cheek. The swearing in the Privy
Councillors lasted half an hour, at least. Some of
us then sat down at the Council-table ; and the
Queen then said, " I name and appoint Henry,
Marquis of Lansdowne, Lord President of my most
honourable Privy Council." During this time the
doors of the room were opened frequently, and
many persons admitted to see the young Queen,
who continued sitting quietly at the head of the
table, giving her approval in the usual form to
several Orders in Council.

I went at two o'clock to the Cabinet Ministers
of William IV., assembled in Downing Street ; all
were present, except Lord Holland. I then learnt
that Lord Melbourne had been summoned to
attend the Queen at nine o'clock in the morning,

CHAP. III. THE PROCLAMATION 79

and that he had written the Declaration which 1837.
Her Majesty had read, on taking her seat at the
head of the Council -table. Only one word had
been altered in that Declaration; it was the
epithet immediately preceding " reliance," which
\\.is altered into "FIRM reliance," by Lord Pal-
merston. Russell told me he thought the altera-
tion had not been an improvement; and Lord
John added, " but Melbourne always gives up his
opinion in these matters, and, when he asks advice,
takes it."

Lord Melbourne now communicated to us the
Queen's pleasure that she desired no change should
take place in the Cabinet. Russell appeared to
me much affected by the death of King William,
and I thought there was more gloom on the faces
of all than might have been expected, not only
amongst ourselves, but generally.

The proclamation of the Queen's accession took
place at St. James's Palace on June 21. Her
Majesty \\aspresented to the people at the window
facing Marlborough House. Lord Melbourne, and
Lansdowne, and Dnncannon, with Spring Rice, in
court dresses, were at her side, with certain great
officers of state behind her. The Duchess of Kent
was near her, on her right. The crowd was very
irreat, but composed of decently dressed people,
and gave Her Majesty a warm reception.

I went to St. James's Palace at twelve o'clock,
and found the Queen holding a Council in the
Throne-room. She wa^ dressed much as she had

80 LONDON CHAP. III.

1837. been the day before, except that she wore a
black straw hat and feathers. Several Orders in
Council were read, and the Queen gave the usual
approval, with her soft voice and her pleasing
smile.

Lord Melbourne and one or two others were
then called into the Royal closet and received by
Her Majesty alone. Lord Lansdovvne told me
that the Queen had remarked to him, she knew
she ought to receive her Ministers unaccompanied
by any lady.

FROM DIARY.

It is impossible to speak too highly of the
Queen's demeanour and conduct. They deserve
all that has been said of them by all parties, and
must have been the offspring, not of art, nor of
education, but of a noble nature, to use the words
of the well-turned eulogy pronounced upon them
by Sir Robert Peel.

June 22. — I went to the House of Commons.
Most of the members were in deep mourning.
Lord John Russell appeared at the Bar witht he
Queen's message. Every one uncovered as he
brought it up, except Sir James Graham, who did
not take off his hat until the Speaker twice re-
quested members to be uncovered. He was right
in point of form, because the correct usage is for
all members to uncover together, when the Speaker
reads the King's title, and not till then ; but he
was foolish in not doing as others did, as he drew

CHAP. III. THE RECORDER'S REPORT 81

down some censures which his explanation of next 1837
day did not remove.

Lord John Russell moved the address of condo-
lence and congratulation in a long speech : a
laboured eulogy on the late King. Some of what
he said was true and interesting, as containing an
account of H.M.'s last days, but I do not think
the whole performance happy. Peel, who was ill
from sciatica and leaning on a crutch, made a
much better and shorter speech.

June 23. — Lord Tavistock showed me this day
a very kind letter from the Queen to Lady Tavi-
stock asking her to be one of the Ladies of the
J bedchamber. She has consented. Lord Lans-
downe told me he was convinced the Queen was
resolved to stand by the Whigs.

FHOM BOOK, " RECOLLECTIONS."

At the Cabinet on Saturday, June 24, we
considered in what way we might obviate the
necessity of the Queen's receiving the Recorder's
Import. The Recorder was decidedly opposed to
doing awny with this ancient usage. Lord Mel-
bourne remarked that, from what he had seen of
the young Queen, he did not think she would
hesitate to sign a death-warrant when the culprit
deserved death.

Tuesday, June 27, I went to Kensington Palace.
All the Privy Councillors, who were Members of
Parliament, were there, except Sir Robert Peel,
who was absent from illness. When we went

VOL. v 11

82 LONDON — WINDSOR CHAP. III.

1*37. into the inner room we found the Queen standing,
with the Marchioness of Lansdowne behind her.

The Queen wore the ribbon of the Garter.
Lord John Russell read the Address of condolence
and congratulation; and, bending his knee, put
it into the Queen's hand. She bent her head,
received it, and put it into the hand of Lord
Melbourne, who put into H.M.'s hand the answer,
which she read, and gave to Lord John Russell.
The Queen read the answers very well, and
received our bows and homage with dignified
courtesy.

FROM DIARY.

June 29. — Dined with our Stanley. Lady
Seymour there, exquisitely beautiful certainly,
but I preferred a quiet Mrs. Edward Villiers,
whom I once recollect as a Miss Liddell.

Charles Buller was there. A little girl,
Stanley's daughter,1 not seven years old, said to
him, " You are always joking. I do not ever
know whether what you say is true." This is quite
the character of the man. The child is right.

FROM BOOK, "RECOLLECTIONS."

Saturday, July 8, was the day fixed for the
funeral of the late King ; accordingly I went to
the house of my good friend, Recorder Richards,
at Datchet. I drove to Windsor at half -past
seven, and was shown into St. George's Hall,

1 Afterwards Lady Airlie.

CHAP. III. THE KING'S F1MKU. 83

\\hei-e 1 found a crowd of Peers, Privy Councillors, 1837.
Judges, Bishops, Officers of the Army and Navy,
Equerries, Heralds, and other court servants.
All were dressed in deep mourning, with scarfs
and weepers, and I soon procured similar apparel.

There was a great bustle, and hurrying, and
pushing ; but, after a little time, we were ordered
to form the procession, the heralds calling out
to the different classes where to go and where
to place themselves.

I went among the Privy Councillors ; Poulett
Thompson and Lord John Eussell were immediately
before me ; Sir Robert Adair with me ; Sir Strat-
ford Canning and Sir George Murray immediately
behind. Sir S. Canning and myself remarked how
urreat the odds were, when Adair, he, and I were
at Constantinople in 1810, against us three meeting
again under such circumstances. We marched on
two by two; but the procession was stopped in
consequence of some Peers having got into a
\vruiiLr place. "We marched slowly, along galleries
constructed for the occasion, which seemed end-
less ; and the procession passed between rows of
the Household Troops, both Horse-Guards and
Foot-Guards, every third or fourth man of whom
held a lar^e wax flambeau. The spectacle was
very gorgeous, but not the least affecting, not
even when we came in St. George's Chapel, and
the lloyal coffin was brought in, with eight Dukes
supporting the pall. The Duke of Wellington
was at the right-hand corner of the coffin. I

84 WINDSOR CHAP. III.

1837. certainly did not see a tear in any eye, not even
in Sir Herbert Taylor's. The Duke of Sussex
was chief mourner, and sat, with his black skull-
cap on, immediately behind the coffin ; Prince
George of Cambridge was immediately behind the
chief mourner. Russell, and P. Thompson, and
Spring Rice, and myself, were in the stalls, on
the floor of the chapel, a little behind the coffin.
Queen Adelaide was in a proj ecting window, over-
looking the aisle — so we were told; but she was
not visible. The singing was, of course, good,
but much too long. The coffin was lowered into
the vault by a windlass ; and, after the anthem,
the style and title of King William were read,
and the clergyman said, " God save Queen
Victoria!" I then heard, but did not see, the
breaking of the official staves, which ended the
ceremony about twelve o'clock at night. I retired
through the ranks of soldiers, whose arms had
been reversed, but were now shouldered. The
Adjutant-General told me there were about 2,800
under arms.

I returned to Datchet, and found the chief
mourner, the Duke of Sussex, at the house of
Mr. Richards. During the supper the Duke
criticised the conductors of the ceremony, and
the officiating clergyman, very severely, and very
justly. He showed no signs of grief; but he
praised the late King much, and said he was a
good and a kind man, meaning to do what was
right. He added that the King was an ignorant

CHAP. III. DUKE OF SUSSEX'S COMMENTS 85

man, but had a good memory. The Duke said 1837.
that his brother's political principles were much
inclined to Toryism, during the whole of his life,
except on the Catholic question. The Duke told
us that he had written to Queen Adelaide an
apology for not calling on her; and I may as
well mention that what affected me more than
any part of the pageant was the sight of her
travelling-carriage, packed for her departure, in
the courtyard of the Castle, where she had been
so short a time ago the reigning sovereign. She
departed, after the funeral, for Bushey. The Duke
of Sussex told us that he had asked the young
Queen how she liked her new office. Her Majesty
replied, "Very much."

I got home about four o'clock in the morning.
So ended the funeral of King William IV.— a
tiresome pageant.

On Wednesday, July 12, I went to St. James's
Palace, where Her Majesty, for the first time,
sat on the throne, and received congratulatory
Addresses from the Lord Mayor and Aldermen of
London, and from the Court of Common Council.
Close to her, on her right, was the Duchess of
Sutherland, Mistress of the Robes, and next to
her stood the Marchioness of Tavistock; on her
left, a step below the throne, stood the Duchess
of Kent, with a lady-in-waiting on II.R.H.

I happened to be next to the Duchess of Kent,
and saw she was much affected when the Addresses
were read, in which her maternal care was extolled.

86 LONDON CHAP. III.

1837. The kissing hands of crippled aldermen and
other civic functionaries lasted so long that Lord
Lansdowne and some others tried to interfere,
but the Queen hore their tedious homage with
great good-humour.

Her Majesty afterwards held a Council, at
which certain Privy Councillors and a great
many Lord-Lieutenants of Counties took the
oaths ; also the Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland, and
the Duke of Wellington, as Constable of the
Tower. There was a good deal of confusion
during this part of the ceremony, and the Queen
could scarcely help smiling more than once ; but,
on the whole, she received the homage of warriors
and statesmen and churchmen with a dignified
composure worthy of her great station. It was
peculiarly gratifying to see her manner with the
Duke of Wellington, and the contrast between
majestic female youth and heroic manly age was
exceedingly striking.

July 14. — In answer to a note from Her Majesty
I went to Buckingham Palace. The apartments
were in great disorder ; housemaids were on their
knees scrubbing the floors, and servants laying
down carpets.

After waiting a little time, with a page, the
door opened, and the Queen walked in, smiling
and curtseying. She placed herself on a sofa, on
one side of a small table, and desired me to take
a chair opposite to her. She told me that she
had read Lord Elphinstone's letter, but had not

(MAI III. THE QUEEN AND INDIAN AFFAIRS 87

had time to read Lord Auckland's. She added 1837.
that Lord Elphinstone's was an interesting letter,
and that he was very young for so important a
command. I smiled, and observed that "youth
was no disqualification for empire," at which
H.^l. lauirhed and looked pleased. She remarked
upon the conduct of Sir Peregrine Maitland, in
refusing to allow the regimental hands to attend
the Hindoo ceremonies. She said she agreed with
me in thinking it imprudent, and that the zeal
of some persons to propagate Christianity often
its own object. I observed that Sir
Maitland was what was called a
rions "man. " Yes," replied H.M., "and his
wife too, who is a sister of the Duke of Richmond,
is ^erious also." She told me she approved of Lord
Klphinstone's caution in that respect, and desired
me to tell him so; and she graciously acceded
10 my request to convey her thanks, on her ac-
-ion to the Throne, to Lord Auckland for his
^rneral conduct.

I asked H.M. if she had read Burnes's travels.1
She replied she had not, but she had seen and
spoken to him, and would read his book. After
a little more conversation, I requested H.M.'s
permission to communicate with her on Indian
alVairs, and send her any news with which I

1 Alexander Barnes's " Journey to and Residence in Cabool " and

It in I'.okhara 1831-3." Burnes was sent as special envoy

to D,,st Mahomed in 1836, and was knighted in 1839. In 1841 he

inunlrn-d in the massacre at Kabul, which gave rise to the

Afghan War of

88 LONDON CHAP. III.

1837. thought she would be interested, or ought to be
acquainted. To this she assented very graciously,
and I rose and withdrew.

I cannot refrain from saying that I received
a most pleasing impression from her manner and
her remarks, as being superior to her age, and
even to her station; at least, such Royalties as
I have seen. I heard afterwards from Colonel
Cavendish that Her Majesty had told Madame
Lehzen, her late governess, that she had had
a very interesting and instructive conversation
with me. I cannot say I gave her much in-
struction. My principal information related to
the three functionaries at the head of the Indian
presidencies, with each of whom I was well ac-
quainted, and entitled to speak of him.

From the Palace I went to a Cabinet. We
discussed the Queen's Speech, and adopted Lord
Melbourne's draft, with scarcely a word of altera-
tion. Some of us had wished to have a more
pointed allusion to the measures which the Lords
had mutilated, or altogether put aside. I ven-
tured to remark that whatever we put in the
young Queen's mouth would be so manifestly
our own sentiments, irrespective of her opinion,
that we should gain nothing by saying strong
things in this Her Majesty's first Speech to
Parliament. Lord Melbourne nodded, and said,
"Very true."

July 14. — At St. James's, on this day, the Queen
received the Addresses of the two Universities.

CHAP. III. UNIVERSITY ADDRESSES 89

The Oxford deputation was headed by the Duke 1837.
of Wellington ; the Cambridge by Marquess
Camden. The former, scarcely to be recognised
in his academical robes, with spectacles on his
nose, read his Address very well. The other
Chancellor hobbled wretchedly. The Oxford
Address was much the best of the two. The
Cambridge Address alluded to Queen Elizabeth
as founder of our Protestant Establishment,
and held her up as a model for our present
Sovereign.

Some fifty Doctors of Divinity, Heads of Houses,

;'e>sors, etc., were presented to the Queen, and

Kis>ed hands; and it was remarked that not one

name was familiar to Europe, nor to scientific

England — no, not one!

The Cambridge deputation behaved most in-
decorously; they crowded the Throne-room in
» very part, and many of them leaped up repeatedly
to get a glimpse of the Queen. They would
not leave the Presence-chamber until actually
pushed out by the Guards. Even the good-
natured young Queen and the Duchess of Kent
seemed displeased. The heat and the noise were
very oppressive.

Afterwards the Queen held a Chapter of the
Garter, and invested the Prince of Leiningen.
I had never seen the ceremony before, and stayed,
with some other Ministers, to look at it. The
Kni-hts sat at a table, with the Queen at the top,
Mr. Bathurst read the oath. The Prince knelt,

VOL. v 12

90 LONDON CHAP. III.

1837. the Duke of Sussex put on the ribbon and the
garter, the Queen helping to buckle it. After
this, the Prince shook hands with the Knights
and the Duchess of Kent. The Herald called on
the Knights one by one ; each of them rose, bowed
to the Queen, and withdrew. The Queen then
retired, and the ceremony ended.

In the evening of the day I dined with Mrs.
Otway Cave, and met two celebrities : Lady
Becher1 and Lady Morgan.2 I sat next to the
first of these ladies, and could hardly believe that
she was the actress who had affected me so much
in former years. Lady Morgan was not near
enough to enable me to remark anything peculiar
in her manner. I thought her not at all hand-
some ; but I saw that she was not a little proud
of a well-turned arm.

FROM DIARY.

July 15. — A Council at Buckingham Palace.
The Queen again forgot to desire her great officers
of the Household to sit down, and when Lord
Melbourne hinted it to her, told them to be seated,
but blushed very much. She, however, soon
recovered herself.

1 The celebrated Miss O'Neill, who first made her mark on the
Dublin stage in Shakespeare's plays, and came to London in 1815.
She married Mr. (afterwards Sir William) Becher, M.P., in 1819.

3 Sydney Owenson, who married Sir Thomas Morgan in 1812,
was the author of several patriotic Irish novels, and in 1817
published a work on France which met with considerable success.
She was conspicuous in London society almost to the time of her
death in 1859.

CHAP. III. THE QUEEN PROROGUES PARLIAMENT 91

FROM BOOK, " RECOLLECTIONS."

July 17. — I went to the House of Commons,
and sa\v the Queen come down to prorogue the
Parliament. The day was fine, the crowd was
great, and the whole spectacle very beautiful.
I thought the equipages more gay, the attendants
and all the accompaniments of the procession,
horses, pages, and people, more brilliant, than I
had ever seen them before. The Queen appeared
much pleased with the reception she met with.
AVherever her eyes turned she saw signs, un-
mistakable, of love and loyalty. She looked
exceedingly well in her glass-coach, and she bowed
n peatedly to the vast crowd that accompanied
her, and to those who, from every roof and window,
\\civ elu Trills ;uid waving handkerchiefs as she
sed slowly along. When the arrival of Her
Majesty was announced to us, I went with the
Speaker to the House of Lords ; but was so much
squee/t-d and pressed on every side that I could
not get near the Speaker. I just caught a glimpse
of Her Majesty on the throne, and thought she
In 'came her crown and sceptre very much.

Her Majesty read her Speech in a very pleasing
and very sensible tone of voice. Every one seemed
charmed with her address and mode of delivery ;
and the Speech was approved, so far as I could
l«'urn, by every one. The House was filled with
ladies, and Lord Willoughby told me that, except
in one instance, he had issued orders for admission
only to Peeresses.

92 LONDON CHAP. III.

1837. At four o'clock the Council met at Buckingham
Palace, and the Queen signed the Proclamation
for dissolving the present Parliament and calling
a new one. Her Majesty looked at one time a
little pale, and flushed at another, and rather
fatigued, as the young creature well might be !

On Wednesday, July 19, Her Majesty held a
Levee — the first of her reign. It was much
crowded. Three thousand persons were present,
and of these the greater number kissed the Queen's
hand. She went through the formalities of the
tedious day with her accustomed grace and
dignity.

I dined the same day with the Queen at
Buckingham Palace ; it was her first large dinner.
The Queen was handed to the table by General
Sebastiani, the French Ambassador. On her right
hand sat Count Orloff, the Russian Ambassador,
on a mission of congratulation. The Duchess of
Kent was next to him ; Lady Lansdowne was next
to Sebastiani; the Prince of Leiningen sat opposite
to the Queen. Lord Palmerston did not come
in until we were seated. Lord Minto and Lord
Glenelg were the other Cabinet Ministers present.
The Duke of Argyll sat at one end of the table,
and Colonel Cavendish, Clerk-Marshal, at the
other. There were about twenty-eight guests in
all. The Duchess of Kent was near the Queen.
I could not help remarking the ease with which
the young Sovereign accommodated herself to her
altered position. The last time I dined in her

CHAP. III. THE GENERAL ELECTION 93

company was at Kensington Palace, where she 1837.
was her mother's guest, and behaved accordingly ;
here, her mother was her guest, and her manner
suited the occasion.

Her Majesty did not speak to any one, except
to the Ambassadors next to her, and occasionally
the Prince of Leiningen, and her mother ; also to
tlui Duke of "Wellington, to whom she, as well as
her mother, was very attentive. He sat next to
the Queen at the tea-table in the drawing-room,
and continued a long time in easy conversation
with her. Lord Grey and his daughter, Lady
r-ina, were present; the former looking very
awful and seven'. When the Queen rose to leave
the room she came to me and spoke about the
letters which I had left with Her Majesty. She
v. as very courteous, and most pleasing; and such,
let me add, I have always found her.

^•1 it (//tat 10. — I find, from the results of the
General Election, that we shall lose six seats at
least; but against this loss we have got rid of
many tiresome men on both sides of the House.

Lord Melbourne, in talking of our losses, evinced
no despondency, but remarked that the Church
had been too much for us. That was true, and I
might have remarked that the Dissenters had been
too little for us; for we received but very luke-
warm support from that capricious body.

I again stood for Nottingham, and gained the
election easily.

Any ust 11. — I called on Lord Palmerston, and

94 LONDON CHAP. III.

1837. heard from him some singular details of people
much in the confidence of some of the Royal
Family, which convinced me that Her Majesty
had been most fortunate in the choice of her
Prime Minister. I did not believe there was
another man in the country who could have ex-
tricated Her Majesty from the difficulties in which
the indiscretions of others had involved her.
Thus it was that, in after-days, I was never sur-
prised at the strong regard and personal confi-
dence with which Her Majesty honoured this most
fascinating man.

Of course these unmistakable marks of prefer-
ence did not escape the notice of those courtiers,
or rather politicians, who were eclipsed by them ;
and I recollect hearing, at the time, that when
some one objected to an apartment being always
kept engaged for Lord Melbourne at Windsor
Castle, the Duke of Wellington, who always had,
from her birth, a fatherly affection for the Queen,
exclaimed, " By G — ! it is all right, and, if I
was Lord Melbourne, I would seldom be out of
the way."

On Thursday, August 17, I dined at Bucking-
ham Palace, to celebrate the Duchess of Kent's
birthday. Of the Ministers there were Lords
Melbourne, Glenelg, and Palmerston, besides
Spring Bice and myself.

When the Queen retired the Duke of Sussex,
good man, began to be obstreperous. We had had
two healths before — the Queen and the Duchess

CHAP. III. CONCERT AT BUCKINGHAM PALACE 95

of Kent ; but the Duke would give other healths, 1837.
and, amongst them, gave "the People of Ireland,"
and he asked Palmerston whether he did not think
them good fellows. Lord Palmerston replied,
" They have done their duty now." The Duke
then gave "the People of India," and addressed
me in a few words, which made Lord Melbourne
burst out into one of his most joyous laughs.

When we went into the drawing-room we found
preparations for a concert ; all the great per-
formers there : Grisi, Albertazzi, and Lablache.
On my complimenting the Duchess on her birth-
day, she said, " Ah, I am too old for many happy
returns." The Queen was kept standing for more
than half an hour, as the Duke and Duchess of
Oldenburgh did not come in time. Her Majesty
bore the tiresome delay with the utmost good-
humour. At last the Duke and Duchess came,
and the Queen saluted the Duchess very graciously,
as did the Duchess of Kent.

All the Cabinet Ministers in London, and some
of the Officers of State, dined the following day
with the Duke of Sussex at Kensington Palace, in
order to meet the Duke and Duchess of Olden-
burgh. The Duchess, a daughter of the dethroned
King of Sweden, seemed a very pleasing personage,
mucli younger than her husband, a dull, good-
humoured man. We had a merry day, with much
health-drinking and speechifying.

The day after this dinner I went to Erie Stoke,
accompanied by my brother, the M.P. for Roches-

96 ERLE STOKE — WINDSOR CASTLE CHAP. III.

1837. ter. I found my children well ; the country was
looking beautiful, and the repose, after the toil
and turmoil of London, was enchanting.

FROM DIARY.

September 5. — I have just read Macaulay's
Essay on Basil Montagu's "Bacon," a very power-
ful performance, but abounding in the usual faults
of the author. He gives his reader no repose for a
moment, but knocks at him right and left like the
boxer in Virgil, nee mora nee requies. However,
there is not a man in the world except Macaulay
who could write it, to say nothing of his Indian
occupations : a criminal code for all India.

FROM BOOK, " RECOLLECTIONS."

I stayed at Erie Stoke until September 11,
when I went on a visit to Her Majesty at Windsor
Castle. I found Lord Melbourne, Palmerston,
and Glenelg there, besides Lord Tavistock, the
Marquis Conyngham (Lord Chamberlain), Lord
Lilford (Lord of the Bedchamber), and the
Honourable Charles Murray (Equerry-in-waiting).
These, with two maids of honour, were at the
dinner-table. The guests at the Castle were the
King and the Queen of the Belgians, with their
attendants, and, amongst them, my friend Van de
Weyer. The Duchess of Kent, with her attendants,
was also there.

Lord Melbourne always sat next to Her
Majesty, and it was most gratifying to observe

CHAP. III. KING AND QUEEN OF THE BELGIANS 07

her demeanour with him ; it was that of a child 1837.
to a parent. He was easy, but respectful, and
behaved as became himself and his Sovereign.
After dinner we drank the health of the King of
the Belgians, the Queen of the Belgians, and of
our Queen.

The Queen of the Belgians was a very fair-
haired, blur-eved, a<|iii line-nosed Princess; young
enough, in appearance, to be Leopold's daughter.
Leopold had the same serious, sombre look as in
his younger days. He was particularly attentive
to me during my visit to the Castle, probably from
having heard from Van de Weyer of the interest I
had taken in the success of the Belgian revolution,
and in his election to the throne. After dinner
His Majesty took me aside, and talked to me of
the state of affairs in his own kingdom. . . . He
was interrupted by the Queen, who ran up to him,
and carried him away to play at cards. I looked
on, standing ; but the Queen insisted on my
sitting down, and, as I still hesitated, said to
Lady Tavistock, who reported it to me, "Sir
John llohhouse will not do as I bid him; he will
not take a chair." Of course I sat down imme-
diately.

I had a pleasant talk with Madame Lehzen,
called the Baroness, late governess of Her
Majesty. She kept up a lively fire upon Lord
Glenelg, accusing him, half in fun, of being too
la/y. That character did attach to Glenelg, but
unjustly ; he was not lazy; he was too scrupulous

VOL. v 13

98 WINDSOR CHAP. III.

1837. and critical as to what he wrote ; and his cousin,
my friend Dr. Chambers, told me that he would
get up early on a winter morning, light his own
fire, and sit down to write a despatch. The even-
ing passed very pleasantly, and, before retiring,
Lady Tavistock told me she had received the
Queen's commands to invite me to breakfast with
her ladies at ten o'clock — a favour which, in those
days, was confined to Privy Councillors. Accord-
ingly, the next day I breakfasted with the
Queen's ladies.

At half -past three the Queen, and Queen of the
Belgians, accompanied by ladies, took a drive in
pony phaetons. Lords Melbourne, Palmerston,
Glenelg, Tavistock, and myself, together with
Colonel Cavendish and Lord Alfred Paget, C.
Murray and Lord Lilford, followed on horseback.
I was on a hard-mouthed, high-trotting beast.
We started at a canter, and the whole party went
at a furious rate up the Long Walk, Lord Mel-
bourne and the other horsemen scampering along,
sometimes by the side of the Queen's carriage,
sometimes behind it. H.M. and the Duchess of
Kent seemed pleased with the horsemanship
of Lord Alfred Paget, mounted on a fiery black
steed, and smiled and laughed at his modest
assurance. He was a handsome, Calmuck-looking
young fellow. We poured through the glades of
the forest at the same rapid pace, until we came
to Virginia Water. Here the Queen alighted,
and entered the Chinese Pavilion overlooking the

CHAP. III. AT VIRGINIA WATER 99

hike. I had never looked at the scene before, 1837.
and could fancy myself on the banks of some
Swiss or Tyrolese lake. The Queen and her
attendants got into the state barge, with the
standard of England flying on it, and were rowed
to the opposite bank. Lord Melbourne was with
Her Majesty; Lord Glenelg steered another
barge, rowed by Charles Murray and Colonel
Cavendish and Lord Lilford and Lord A. Paget.
Lord Palmerston rowed himself alone in a small
boat. He offered me a place in it, but I was so
hot, from my high-trotting horse, that I was
at raid of catching cold, and declined.

The Royal party landed at the Pavilion, and
the Queen ordered the frigate to be got under
way. This pretty miniature man-of-war was
manned by a lieutenant and six sailors. It was
MM ne time before she was ready, although Lord
A. Paget assisted the operations. H.M. got a
little impatient, and sent to know when the
frigate would move. Lord Alfred sent back word
" in two minutes " ; and, sure enough, in two
minutes her sails were shaken out, her anchor
weighed, and she glided very slowly away. A
bree/.e just thru sprang up, as if to please the
mistress of a thousand war-ships, who was now
amusing herself with a water-toy.

AVhen opposite to the Pavilion the frigate began
to salute, and fired her one-and-twenty guns
with great precision. A very pretty effect was
produced by the smoke, burnished by the setting

100 WINDSOR CHAP. III.

1837. sun, rolling, and running, as it were, on the
surface of the lake, at each discharge of the
cannon. The Queen, and her suite, and all of
us, were much gratified with the spectacle. It
was the first visit of Queen Victoria to Virginia
Water.

The dinner at the Castle this day passed off
agreeably, and, when in the drawing-room, the
Queen sat down to chess with the Queen of the
Belgians. H.M. had never played before ; Lord
Melbourne told her how to move, and Lord
Palmerston also assisted her. I looked on for
some time, without taking part in the game, and
I might as well have abstained altogether ; for,
when Melbourne and Palmerston gave up advising
Her Majesty, in order that I might succeed to
them, I did not succeed better than my colleagues.
I was very near winning the game, when I lost it
by an oversight, and by being very often asked by
Her Majesty, " What must I do ? " There was
also some little confusion created by the two
queens on the board and the two Queens at the
table. Her Majesty was not so discouraged by
her defeat as to prevent her playing again the
evening after this. Who played for the Queen I
do not know; but H.M. ran up to me laughing,
and saying she had won. She asked me how she
came to lose yesterday. I replied, " Because your
Majesty had such bad advisers," on which she
laughed heartily, and so did the Queen of the
Belgians, who, by the way, spoke English well.

CHAP. in. MELBOURNE'S OPINION OF THE QUEEN 101

Thus ended my visit to the Queen, for the next 1837.
morning I left the Castle early, and returned to
Erie Stoke.

FROM DIARY.

September 13. — Lord Tavistock told me that
King William had taken away the Duke of
Bedford's bust from the Windsor gallery because
the Duke had subscribed to O'Connell ; but the
young Queen replaced it immediately on arriving
at Windsor. Indeed, from all I can learn there
is no doubt of her attachments at present being
for our friends ; but she is a young creature and
a Queen, and who shall answer for her future
conduct ?

Lord Melbourne praised her very much to me,
and said that it was exceedingly satisfactory to
transact business with her. I hear the Duchess
of Kent is better inclined to us than she was, and
bears Sir John Conroy's exclusion from Court
with due resignation. The part taken by Lord
Melbourne in the squabble between Madame the
Harmless Lelizen and Sir J. Conroy has been
exceedingly agreeable to the Queen.

October li.— Lord Lansdowne came over the
other day to ask me to meet Lords Melbourne and
John Russell at Bowood ; so I drove over there,
and took Methuen.

1 went over the gardens and grounds, to the
c^cade which I formerly thought so magnificent.
The lake is certainly a fine piece of water, about

102 ERLE STOKE — BOWOOD CHAP. III.

1837. forty- two acres, I hear ; but the shrubberies and
pleasure-grounds are dark and dull, and the
general air of the place is sombre.

Methuen told me that Bo wood was offered to
his grandfather before he bought Corsham ; it was
about 1,400 acres of marshy ground. Lord Shel-
burne purchased it, employed Brown to form the
water and plant the woods and build the mansion ;
and Mr. Methuen bought Corsham, then a small
place; he also employed Brown, and thus, in a
small space of time, two of the principal places in
Wiltshire have been made and hunted over by the
Lord-Lieutenant ; and the other, until lately, by
a county member.

There was a small party at dinner. Lady
Lansdowne looked far from recovered from her
recent calamities ; and Lady Louisa so ill as to
threaten another loss. Even worthy Lord Shel-
burne seemed of very delicate health, and still
the worse for his blow at Methuen's nomination.
Lord Lansdowne, as usual, unperturbed by past,
present, or future evils, placid and pleasing to all.

Lord Melbourne, who had been to hear his own
Bishop Denison confirm at Bremhill said, " He
is a Bishop, every inch of him."

FROM BOOK, " RECOLLECTIONS."

November 7. — Returned to London, and in the
evening dined at the Palace. I thought the
Duchess of Kent looked out of spirits. Not so
Her Majesty ; she was very lively, and most

CHAP. III. BARONESS LEHZEN AND THE QUEEN 103

pleasing to everybody. In the drawing-room she 1837.
spoke for some time to me about Indian news,
and laughed a good deal at my having sent her
a Cabinet-box unlocked— a very stupid neglect,
certainly,

Lord Howick and I had a good deal of con-
versation with Baroness Lehzen, who told us that
the Queen always wished her to be near her at
state ceremonies, but that she preferred being
at home to receive Her Majesty when they were
over, in order that she might assist in taking care
of the Queen's health. The Baroness mentioned
that the Queen never read her speeches to any one
aloud, except to her; and she then said that, if she
cmild read it aloud to one person, she could read
it to any number. Madame Lehzen added that
she did not go to hear the Queen read the
Addresses, being afraid that H.M. might hesitate,
i i she looked at her. So said this good lady ; but
I confess I did not think the Queen a person
likely to tremble, even at her governess.

November 8. — I heard this day that there had
been some difficulty as to the Duchies of Cornwall
and Lancaster, and Rice told me he had heard
from Lord Spencer, advising him to be cautious
how they were interfered with, as an imprudence
in that respect might alienate the Court, and
change the course of events during the whole
reign. " How strange," said Rice, " that Althorp
should preach prudence to me ! " And strange it
would seem to Rice ; but the prudence of the one

104 LONDON CHAP. III.

1837. differed very much from the prudence of the other.
Rice was cautious from timidity ; Althorp, from a
knowledge of the danger, and a courageous dis-
regard of the imputation of being afraid.

November 9. — Her Majesty attended a dinner at
the Guildhall. The multitude was very great,
both in the streets and in the windows and roofs
of houses ; and the streets looked very imposing.
The charity children, and the schools, and the
different Companies of the Corporation, placed in
wooden galleries, decorated with coloured cloth,
round the railings of St. Paul's, produced a very
pleasing effect.

When the Queen entered the Council- chamber
she was addressed very pompously by Recorder
Law. H.M. read a short answer, put into her
hands by Lord John Russell ; and then she told
the Lord Mayor, when he had kissed hands, that
she had ordered a patent of baronetcy to be made
out for him, and she knighted the two Sheriffs.

H.M. then retired with the Duchess of Kent,
and the Princesses, and her ladies; and shortly
afterwards we went into the Hall and seated
ourselves at the table assigned to us. The city
etiquette studiously avoids distinguishing official
rank ; at least, it did so on this occasion.

I found myself next to Sir Henry Hardingc,
who talked very agreeably, and before we parted
he said two or three things that showed he did not
despair of the party to which he belonged. He
informed me also that Peel, who was in Paris, was

CHAP. II r POLITICAL TENDENCIES 105

in strong health ; and that the Duke of Wellington 1837.
\\ is able to hunt all day, and ride from fifteen to
twenty miles to cover and hack.

I was too far from the Queen to see how she
received the applause with which her health was
drunk ; but the newspapers said that she was
much pleased, and mse and curtsied repeatedly.
ll.M. rose from the table, and left the hall about
half-past eii;ht, amidst thunders of applause.

I did not get home till half-past eleven, having
been thus ten hours assisting, as the French call
it, at this ceremony. The streets looked as full as
they had been during the day, with carriages of
every description, and the illuminations were very
brilliant through all the streets from Guildhall to
St. James's.

From what I heard, I should not say there was
much political feeling displayed on either side.
The Duke of Wellington was cheered passing the
Carlton Club-house, and Lord Melbourne was
occasionally applauded; but even the Morning
Post confessed that the Duke was not welcomed
so much as might have been anticipated. The
Queen, however, was so well received as almost to
raise the indignation of the then Tory Times, which
Complained that a you HIT woman who had done
no one good thing for the nation, should receive
the re\\ard due to a long life of loyal patriotism.

The affairs of Lower Canada now engaged the
attention of the Home Government, and caused
great anxiety. Lord Gosford, the Governor, had

VOL. v 14

106 LONDON CHAP. III.

1837. sent for more troops, and dismissed thirty-six
magistrates and militia officers, for outrageous
conduct at public meetings ; Papineau was one of
them. Being asked, by order of Lord Gosford,
whether he had used certain expressions imputed
to him, he refused to reply, and said the question
was impertinent. We had now to decide who was
to succeed Lord Gosford. Lord Melbourne said
that now was the time to disprove the accusation
of the advocates of despotism, that our Constitu-
tional Governments did very well for fair weather
and peaceable times, but would not work well in
days of difficulty and war. If a man could be
found fit to be trusted with complete discretion,
he (Lord Melbourne) would give it him ; and,
perhaps, Lord Durham might be persuaded to
accept the charge, and, under such conditions,
might act with boldness as well as prudence.

November 14. — At a Cabinet to-day we discussed
what provision ought to be made for the Duchess
of Kent. We agreed that Lord Melbourne should
make her a distinct offer of £30,000, and should
recommend Government to pay her debts. Lord
Holland thought the sum rather small, and I was
disposed to agree with him. The Princess-Dowager
of Wales, mother of George III., had £60,000 a
year. But Russell said, " God knows how many
Dowagers we may have ! "

I dined this day with the Queen. In the
drawing-room I took the opportunity to speak to
Her Majesty about the fatigues of the City

CHAP. III. Dl CHESS OF KENT'S AFFAIRS 107

profession and dinner, which she said she had 1837.
borne very well. I said I was afraid she might
have been annoyed by going to a play the night
after the dinner and on Friday nii^ht also. " Oh,"
said H.M., "not at all ; I like a play very much."
The young creature spoke like an emancipated
schoolgirl, without, however, forgetting her great
station.

At a Cabinet held at Lord Melbourne's private
house, on Sunday, November 19, Lord Melbourne
read to us a letter from the Duchess of Kent, in
which she formally declined the offer of paying
her debts by a parliamentary vote, and said little
or nothing of the proposal to give her £30,000
a year for personal income. Indeed, she talked
of the income and the rank to be assigned to her
as matters quite unsettled, by which we understood
that she \\ished to he given the precedence and
rank of a Queen-mother. She remarked that,
since the days of Henry VII., no one had been
in her situation. On this point Lord Melbourne
told us that it was not the Queen's wish to give
her mother a rank that would put her mother
above her aunts. " It would," said the Queen,
"do my mother no good, and would offend my
aun

It was agreed that Lord Melbourne should write
a letter to the Duchess, setting her right in regard
to some of her statements, and repeating that the
Queen had no money out of which she could pay
her mother's debts, adding that the Ministers did

108 LONDON CHAP. III.

1837. not stand in the way of the Queen paying the
debts of the Duchess, which in H.R.H.'s last
letter had been reasserted. Lord Melbourne told
us that he had informed the Queen there were
differences in the Cabinet as to the mode of paying
these debts ; on which Her Majesty said, " I hope
there is no difference of opinion as to whether I
am to pay them or not."

On Monday, November 20, the Queen opened
the new Parliament in person. Her Majesty was
rapturously received by an immense concourse of
people. I thought the cheering and the waving
of handkerchiefs and hats would never end. I
did not choose to accompany the Speaker to the
House of Lords, as the crowd and crush of members
were greater than I liked to encounter. Our
friend Ward was pushed against a pillar, and his
shoulder was dislocated. I heard the Queen spoke
the Speech exceedingly well.

November 22. — I went to Buckingham Palace
to attend the Speaker with our Address. After
waiting a short time in the antechamber, the doors
were thrown open, and we walked in. The Queen
was on the Throne, and looked really very
beautiful ; although two fine women, the Duchess
of Sutherland and Lady Barham, were standing
next to her. She had a fine bust, lighted up by
the freshness of early youth. Russell handed to
H.M. her short answer to us, which, as usual, she
read very distinctly.

November 28. — At our Cabinet to-day we had a

CHAP. III. DINNER AT BUCKINGHAM PALACE 109 183?.

discussion about giving the liberty of the press
to the island of Malta ; and, in spite of the before-
recorded opinion of the Duke of Wellington,
a -reed to do it.

December 1. — Lord John Russell introduced his
Irish Poor Law, the same as that of last year.
The principal merit of his speech was, that it did
not make the measure of too much importance.

December 2.— After a long afternoon at the
India Board, 1 dined this day at the Palace, but
had i^reat difficulty in getting there, on account
of the dense fog which beset this part of the
metropolis. The Queen sat down to dinner before
my arrival. I explained the cause of my delay,
and II..M. received my excuses with great con-
descension, smiling and bowing to me several
times — hardly worth mentioning, except as show-
ing her natural disposition. Lord Melbourne, as
usual, was at her left hand, next to her, and kept
up a conversation which seemed to amuse her, for
she often laughed.

The women were more numerous than the men.
1 was seated between a very beautiful young
woman, Mrs. Charles Grey, and a very pleasing
person, Miss Davis of the Bedchamber, and passed
a pleasant time of it, until Her Majesty went into
the drawing-room.

AVlien the men joined the ladies, H.M. came
up to me, and spoke to me about the company.
She afterwards sent Lord Byron to me, and desired
me to play at whist with the Duchess of Kent.

110 LONDON CHAP. III.

1837 I did so ; and Lord John Russell and Lord Byron
played against the Duchess and myself. Sir
Frederick Stovin played the hand of the Duchess,
but she seemed confused. We won the rubber,
and then we changed partners; Russell and I
played together. The Duchess was taken ill; but,
after one of her ladies had given her some salts
to smell, she continued her game, and won this
rubber. Russell had to pay her eight shillings,
and he put down a sovereign. She gave him nine
shillings, saying, " I believe that is right." He
smiled, and took his change; but did not seem
pleased with this specimen of Royal arithmetic.
I got home by eleven o'clock; the fog was very
thick, and I was accompanied by link-boys all
the way.

CHAPTER IV

FROM DIARY. 1837.

December 3. — I dined with Mr. Stanley, and sat
next to Mrs. Dawson Darner, an amusing woman.
Charles Buller was of the party. His Radicalism

docs not kiM'p him away from good men's feasts,
and our friends have evidently a wish to be well

witli him.

>.u BOOK, " RECOLLECTIONS."

On December 4, I dined at our Raleigh Club.
There was a very large party. The lions of the
evening were a son of Lucien Buonaparte, and
Captain Black. The Prince, as they called him,
n sembled Napoleon more than any one of the
family that I had seen. Indeed, he was very
like what the Emperor was in 1815, particularly
about the mouth and cheek. He seemed a good-
natured, unaffected man. and, when we drank his
health, returned thanks in a few appropriate
sentences.

December 7. — There has been much discussion
about a petition, presented by Mr. O'Brien, com-
plaining of Sir Francis Burdett for subscribing

in

112 LONDON CHAP. IV.

1837. to the Spottiswoode Fund.1 Burdett himself made
a vigorous speech, reminding me much of his old
manner, bold and unflinching, and carrying the
war into the enemy's camp. He owned he had
been wrong in the matter of the Middlesex
subscription, and had been laughed at by Sheridan
for it. He confessed that he was, at that time,
smarting under the effects of two sharp contests ;
being obliged to live on very little, and keep
only a single pair of carriage-horses. This was
the weakest part of his speech, and our benches
began to titter ; but he dashed out again, and
declared against O'Connell and his rent, and sat
down amidst thunders of applause from the
Tories.

O'Connell answered the charge of being a paid
patriot, and said he gloried in the fact. He
had made great sacrifices, and had exposed himself
to every stigma, even to the insult of every old
renegade !

Young Disraeli, who had announced that he
would single out O'Connell for combat, then made
his maiden speech, which was such an exhibition
of insolence and folly as I never heard in my
life before. In conclusion, he told the House,

1 The system of deciding disputed elections was at this time most
unsatisfactory. These cases were tried by Committees of the House
of Commons appointed for the purpose, which were always supposed
to give the verdict in accordance with the political views of the
majority. After the last election 67 petitions were lodged, and a
fund called the Spottiswoode Fund was instituted to promote petitions
against Irish returns alleged to have been obtained by violence and
intimidation.

CHAP. IV. DUKE OF SUSSEX'S INCOM! 113

11 You shall hear me another time." A prediction 1837.
which this celebrated gentleman afterwards fully
verified.

We at last divided against O'Brien, and were
•T'.l to 121. The decided Ministerialists, the
Tories, and a portion of the Liberals, voted with
the majority. Thus, and thus unsatisfactorily,
ended the threatened opposition to the Spottiswoode
Subscription.

De< 1). — In the evening of this day I

dined with the Duke of Sussex at Kensington
Palace. We had refused an increase of income
t" the Duke, who had written a very handsome
letter to Lord Melbourne on the subject. He
this day entertained all the Cabinet Ministers
and others of the party — in all twenty-six guests
— blue ribbons, and red ribbons, very fine, and not
a little dull.

Sunday, December 10, I dined at Lord Mel-
bourne's with a large party, chiefly Members
of Parliament. I sat between Sheil and Sergeant
1^1 1* -'ind had a pleasant day. I was much
pleased with Lord Melbourne's easy, but polite
manner towards his guests. The rest of the
even in- I passed with a party at Lord Holland's,
where 1 met Lytton Bulwer and other M.P.'s.

December 12.— In the House of Commons to-
day our Chancellor of the Exchequer proposed
an increase of £8,000 a year to the income of the
])uchess of Kent. No serious opposition was
offered; Hume and Grote did object, and so, to

VOL. v 15

LONDON CHAP. IV.

1837. my surprise, did Charles Wynne, and, I thought,
very much to the disgust of Sir Robert Peel, who
made wry faces during his speech. As we were
walking away, I said to Mr. Wynne, " You are
a hold man ! " He replied, " I took the same
course in 1818. I could not do otherwise now."

December 14. — On returning to the House, after
my mutton-chop to-day, I found Palmerston re-
plying to a " galimatias " of T. Attwood, of
Birmingham, who had anticipated the arrival of
eighty sail of Russian men-of-war off the coast
of Norfolk, or, perhaps, at Sheerness. Palmerston
spoke well, as he always does.

We have had some tiresome discussions about
the Civil List. W. Harvey, as usual, was very
bitter against, accusing us of doing neither one
thing nor the other, and " dandling the rickety
babe, Expediency." It would not be easy to
carry metaphorical talk much farther than this.

December 20. — We had a Council at the Palace
this day. I took the Bishop of Bombay there,
and introduced him to Her Majesty. I also
introduced the Bishop to Lord Melbourne and
John Russell. His Right Reverence was a mild,
inoffensive gentleman; but he was so little ac-
quainted with recent events that, when he asked
me which was Lord Brougham, and I told him
that Lord Brougham was not there, he said, " I
mean the Lord Chancellor." I replied, " That is
the Lord Chancellor — Lord Cottenham." The
good man looked a little surprised, but said

r/f \i-.IV. CANADIAN AFFA II :s 115

nothing. If JJroimham knew this, his vanity 1837
would be not a little wounded.

L« ader, Molcsworth, and Hume have been
making most furious speeches on Canadian affairs,
wishing success to the Canadians; and I heard
Warlmrton attack the Government bitterly, and
recommend the Canadians to separate from the
mother-country.

On December 24 I went to Erie Stoke, and
found a small family party there, with my dear
children very well; but on December 31 I
received letters requesting me to come to London
to attend a Cabinet on Canadian affairs. A sad
demolition of my poor three weeks' holiday.

On January KJ, Parliament reassembled.
Lord J. Russell, in explaining our Canadian
measures, said as little as possible to provoke
opposition from any quarter. He concluded by
mentioning that Lord Durham would be Governor-
General of all the British North American
provinces, and, l»y help of a Committee of Advice,
would frame a new and Liberal Constitution for
the Lower Province.

DIARY.

Brougham and Melbourne, at this time, fell foul
of one another in the Lords. Brougham, with a
sneer, complimented Melbourne on his superior
proficiency in court phraseology, because he had
corrected Brougham in calling the Duchess of
Kent " Queen-mother," instead of " Mother of the

116 LONDON CHAP. IV.

1838. Queen." Melbourne retorted that, in that respect,
no one knew better how to bow to power than
Brougham. This brought a furious reply from
Brougham, who defied Melbourne to prove his
charge. As if such a charge was capable of proof,
and as if Brougham's servility at Court was not
notorious. I recollect very well that it was a
joke amongst us that no one performed the kotow
so well as our Chancellor. He bowed his very
head to the Throne with more than Persian ador-
ation. He is now trying to lead the new Re-
formers — the ultra-Radical Party.

PROM BOOK, "RECOLLECTIONS."

January 18. — This evening Lord Brougham
made an intemperate speech against our Canadian
policy in the House of Lords, and immediately
afterwards left the House. This gave Lord
Glenelg an opportunity of making a spirited com-
ment on this unfair hostility, and comparing the
conduct of the retired Chancellor with the noble
candour of the Duke of Wellington, who had,
indeed, behaved in a manner worthy of his great
name and station.

Brougham, no doubt, considered he should give
the death-blow to the Melbourne Administration
by this effort. I heard Roebuck boasted of having
Brougham in his pocket, and had said, " As we
are deserted by Durham, we must trot out the old
horse."

January 19. — I dined at the Palace. I handed

CHAP. IV. SIR FRANCIS HEAD 117

in, and sat next at dinner to Lady Portman— 1838.
a most beautiful creature— and much admired my
neighbour. In the draw ing-room the Queen spoke
to me about Lord Auckland. She desired me to

express her satisfaction to him, saving "India
\\as sure to go on well under such a Governor-

.enil."

Janitor'/ '11.— At our Cabinet meeting to-day,
\\e had read to us a most ludicrous despatch from
Head, n'mii^1 an account of his defeat of Mac-
ken/.ie's attempt upon Toronto. Glenelg read to us
aUo a private letter from Head, equally absurd,

1 Sir Francia Bond Head (1793-1855), well' known as author of
"Ridtl Across the Pampas" and "Bubbles from the Brunnen of

'

" In the Upper Province the administration had at this critical
iiion. M iij'T Head, who had been almost

dragged from his U-d while acting as assistant poor-law commis-
sioner, that In- illicit be sent to govern this great colony, at one of
tin- most important rri.-es of its history. This modern Cincinnatus
. iii< !•• like a hero of romance or a knight-errant than a sober
MII, in. Knotting that a revolt was impending, his first care was
oldiiT out of tin- province. He allowed the rebels to
make ail their pn partitions without the slightest hindrance. When
at length they adv.tiK -ed, li«- summoned the Militia and the loyal
inh.il'it. ints to his ;ii<l. The call was obeyed with enthusiastic
unanimity ; and, with the a.>si>tance thus obtained, he completely
suppressed the insurrection. This spirited way of dealing with the
.lion was highly applauded by many, both at home and in the
;,y ; lmt in the opinion of the Colonial Secretary the success
which attended it did not atone for the imprudence of which he con-
:vd tin- ^'iivernor h.id been xuilty, in sending away the troops on
tin- cvr of a iwolt, which mi^'lit very prol>al)ly have been supported
I lar>re forco of I'nitrd States sympathisers, in which case the
it would perhaps have been very calamitous. Further difl'er-
ol>inion lu twr» n Major Head and the home authorities
d him to send in his resignation, which was accepted, much to
the regret of the colonist*. The services he had rendered were
a«'k; i.y his being raised to a baronetcy."— MOLESWOETH'S

r I/ i i

118 LONDON CHAP. IV.

1838. telling how he was fired at from a pine-tree, and
how a boy fired his rifle at the tree, when " down
dropped a great rebel stone-dead " ; yet this Head
certainly saved Upper Canada, if not Lower
Canada, by the dissolution of the Legislative
Assembly and other decisive measures.

February 1. — At a Council at Buckingham
Palace, Her Majesty swore in three Lord-Lieu-
tenants. Sir W. W. Wynn was led in by his
brother, in a dreadful state of disease and de-
crepitude ; then came an old acquaintance of
mine, Lord Mount-Edgcumbe, lame and paralytic ;
the third was Lord Lonsdale, nearly blind, and
tottering on the brink of the grave. There was
something affecting in seeing the young creature,
in the bloom of youth, receiving the homage of
these decrepit nobles. She very benignantly rose
to present her hand to Sir Watkin Wynn, as the
poor man could not kneel ; and, amongst H.M.'s
other amiable qualities, I thought I had always
perceived a respect for age.

I dined with Ellice. We had a merry, at
least a noisy party ; the Tankervilles were
there, and the Dawson Darners, our Stanley,
and Lord Durham. I had some private talk
with the last, who told me he knew he was
sent abroad in order to be got rid of; and
that, excepting myself, there was not a man
in the Cabinet who cared a farthing for him.
I did my best, so far as I could consistently
with truth, to give him a more kindly feeling

CHAP. IV. THE FROZEN SERPENTINE 119

towards Melbourne and Russell; but he shook 1838.
his IK -ad.

February 2. — In the House of Lords Brougham
made a furious attack on our Canada Bill, and
on us. Lord Melbourne answered him with much
vigour, and made him still more angry. The
Duke of Wellington, in the same generous spirit
with which he had hitherto supported us, repeated
his former assertion that we were justified in not
expecting any attack in Canada, and that the
troops then- \\nv sufficient for the purpose.

DIARY.

L — I walked with my daughter
Charlotte across the Serpentine, much to the child's
delight, although I own I did not like to hear
the ice cr.-icking under the weight of thousands.

Mi-miry 5. — We brought on our Parliamentary
Mlectorx ami Freemen Bill. In the course of the
debate Sudden recommended the House not to
alter the Reform Bill, but "leave well alone."
Russell, in his reply, took care to remind Sugden
<>f his prophecy of ruin to the monarchy whilst
the Reform Bill was passing.

February 1 k— I went to the College of Surgeons
and heard Mr. Travers deliver the Hunterian
oration. 1 thought it a little too flowery, but
written in a liberal spirit, he being, with Brodie,
one of the few of his great profession who be-
longed to the Liberal party. This accounted for
the presence of Lord Radnor and Lord Denman

120 LONDON CHAP. IV.

1838. and other friends at the lecture. Brodie pointed
out to me some of the most distinguished guests-
Owen, who was bidding fair to be the greatest of
comparative anatomists ; and Clift, John Hunter's
associate, a shepherd's boy from Cornwall. Lord
Radnor concluded the evening with a short speech,
in which he congratulated the surgeons at being
no longer twins with the barbers. This sounded
very odd, and was odd, although it is true that
Travers had alluded to the union of the two
trades, which I believe was not severed until
somewhere about 1745.

FROM BOOK, " RECOLLECTIONS."

February 15. — At the House of Commons to-day
Sir Robert Peel, speaking on the question of
Ballot, made what I considered the true objection
to that measure — namely, that it would take
away that influence over the vote which pre-
serves the representative system, in our country,
from being of too democratic a character.

To this opinion I incline. I think the Ballot
before the Reform Bill, and without it, would
have been a good measure ; but I am not pre-
pared to say the same of it after, and with the
Reform Bill. Accordingly, I have never voted
for it since the carrying of that measure, although
our Liberal friends have always done me the
honour to fancy that I have made a sacrifice of
my opinions and conscience for the sake either
of friendship or of office, and consequently they

CHAP. IV. BARON DE BODE 121

treated mo this time, as they did the last, to an 1838.
ironical cheer as I walked up the House with
tin* majority, and they confined this distinction
to me alone. Never mind.

Although I had resolved not "to mind," I had
some difficulty in being silent under the unfair
and ignorant attacks made on me. The Cwrifr
\\as then a Government ne\\ -spaper, and in the
paper of the next evening I saw that I was at-
tacked as having acted a less honourable part than
those ollicia Is who voted for the Ballot, or than those
who stayed away. These people did not know
either what honour is or \\hat the facts were.

FROM DIAKV.

February 17. — I believe in these days I was
worth something as a debater, 1'or Lord Durham
told me to-day lie should not go to Canada in
comfort unless I promised him solemnly to make
the " Jiiu Man " my peculiar care. Alas! I fear
my time is gone by ; at any rate, I cannot speak
from the Treasury bench.

1 IIOM BOOK, " RECOLLECTIONS.'*

February 22.— In the course of this evening I
voted with Rice against the claim of a personage
who has had more parliamentary vitality than
any man I ever recollect — I mean the Baron de
Bode.1 I thought, at the time, that our Chan-

1 Baron de Bode hid chim.as a British subject, to losses sustained
l>y him during the French Revolution, and his case was frequently
disrusstMl in Parliament He died in 1846.

VOL. V 16

122 LONDON CHAP. IV.

1838. cellor of the Exchequer had completely crumpled
up and crushed this complicated claim. Par from
it. Year after year has it reappeared, and only
a short time ago was revived by one of the most
accomplished debaters and vigorous reasoners that
ever advocated a questionable cause.

February 28. — I was detained in the House of
Commons so long that I did not reach the Palace,
where I dined, until Her Majesty had sat down
to table. The Duchess of Gloucester and several
Tory peers were present ; but our minorities had
not affected the manner of Her Majesty to Lord
Melbourne, who sat next to her, and, much to
the disgust of my neighbour, Lord Wharncliffe,
was engaged in conversation with Her Majesty
half the dinner-time. The Queen was pointedly
civil to me, and accepted my apologies for being
late with her usual benignity. In the drawing-
room Lord Melbourne was still next to the Queen.
The Duchess of Kent had her own table, and
some of the household sat down to another.

March 3. — Talking over our position at a Cabinet
meeting, Melbourne, for once, was for standing
our ground, if we had a majority only of one.
He preferred being charged with tenacity of
office, than with a readiness to abandon the
Government. I attributed this to the partiality
manifested by the Queen for Lord Melbourne's
Administration and general management. We sat
until half-past five, talking of business, but very
much after the manner of men who thought this

CHAP. I V. Till WEARING OF ORDERS 123

min-ht never come on. Nevertheless,
tliis vi TV week Lord John Russell introduced an
admirable Bill for the administration of justice in
the County Courts, thus adding to his, and I may
viy our, claims to the gratitude of the country.

March 4. — I had a large party at my own
house, to meet the French and Russian Am-
hasx.-idnr.s. Pozzo di Borgo sat on my right hand,
and General Sebastiani on my left. Besides these,
there were the American Minister and the
Austrian Charge* d'Aifaires. Melbourne, J. Russell,
Palmerston, Lord Hill, Lord Durham, Lord Rad-
nor, young Lord Russell, Sir James Lushington,
and my brother, irere also of the party; and we
had an agreeable evening.

I had some talk, privately, with both the
Ambassadors. The French General said to me of
Russia, "II faut absolument la contenir, oui,
absolument " ; and Pozzo di Borgo talked to me of
the French with the utmost contempt, saying that
they made more parade with their paltry Algerine
colony than we did with our huge Indian Empire.
I'.'/zo di Borgo then pointed to Lord William
Bentinck, and contrasted him with Sebastiani,
who was covered with orders. "There," said
Pozzo, " is a good specimen of the two nations ;
one governed India in a straw hat and a linen
jacket — the other comes to meet us here, as you
see, covered with decorations ! Lord William,"
continued Pozzo, " when travelling in India, wore
a straw hat and a linen jacket, it is true ; but

124 LONDON CHAP. IV.

1838. then he had 300 elephants and 500 dromedaries
with him, besides 10,000 cavalry."

March 6. — This day came on our debate about
Canada. Lord Sandon, after a long and feeble
speech, moved a vote of want of confidence in the
Administration, for their ambiguous, irresolute,
and dilatory Canadian policy. Lord Stanley
moved a violent attack on Palmerston, for having
belonged to so many parties in power. Palmerston
threw up his hands in surprise at such a charge
from such a quarter. This made Stanley more
angry, and more bitter, to the great delight of
the Tories.

The evening's debate was concluded by a speech
from Sir Charles Grey, the Canadian Com-
missioner, who looked exactly like Mr. Pickwick ;
so much so, that the muscles even of Sir Robert
Peel's face were moved, and none of us could help
laughing. Grey was called " Mr. Pickwick " to the
end of his days. He was an able man, and, I
always heard, a good man, who, like most of us,
talked a little nonsense about his own exploits,
particularly in regard to the ladies, whom, so he
said, he subdued by threatening suicide.

March 7. — We had a very decisive victory on
our Canadian debate, but our stupid Chronicle
did not make half enough of it, for with a little
management this ought to have settled matters
for the session.

The Queen smiled very significantly as we took
our seats at a Council the next day. H.M. had

CHAP. IV. ANTI-SLAVERY MEETINGS 125

been observed to be very anxious at dinner the
day before. Russell told me that she spoke to
him in warm praise of the recent conduct of the
Duke of Wellington ; but added that she could
not say the same of Sir Robert Peel. Lord Mel-
bourne told me he thought that Peel, in his heart,
MM -lad of the result of the struggle in the House
of Commons.

March 10. — I dined at Lord Albemarle's. He
had invited a large party to meet the Duke of
Sns.s,..\, who did not come. Lord Melbourne,
Lord and Lady Albemarle, and myself, had a long
talk, alter every one else was gone, about the
tl Family and the Pitzclarences. Lord
Melbourne said their " principal characteristic
\\as, that they would ask for anything."

March 11. — I had a dinner party, and amongst
my guests were Lord and Lady Holland. We had
an agreeable day, which, indeed, Lord Holland
always ensured.

I, ui;v anti-slavery meetings were held on two
days this week, at Exeter Hall. Lord Brougham
vrafl in the (hair. His invective against our
Cabinet was boundless, and he outlied himself.

On March 17 I went to an Assembly at Lady
Albemarle's. This was a rare amusement for
me -it' amusement it could be called. My chief
employment was listening to Pozzo di Borgo's
assurances that Russia was giving every possible
assistance to the Government of Louis Philippe,
and did not countenance Henry V.

12G LONDON CHAP. IV.

1838. The next day I dined with the Duke of Sussex
at Kensington, and met a very large party. To
this dinner I was invited by a note signed
" Cecilia " ; and I did not, for some time, know
that the writer was the left-handed wife of our
host. She was a good-natured, civil lady, and
had gone by several names. She was then
" Underwood." l

I dined on March 19 at the Raleigh Club, of
which I had been chosen President, in succession
to Lord Ripon, who, good-naturedly, proposed me.
I proposed the health of Lord Ripon, and he
proposed mine. These friendly interchanges of
civility between persons so long politically opposed
to each other gave a fillip to our meeting.

March 21. — I had an audience with the Queen,
and presented a letter from the Regent of the
Carnatic. It was in a large tin cylinder, covered
with flowered muslin, and H.M., not being used
to such correspondence, laughed much when I
handed the huge letter to her. I did not detain
her long, being fearful of fatiguing her.

I dined afterwards with Lord Durham, at a
gorgeous entertainment. The Russian and Austrian

1 Augustus Frederick, Duke of Sussex (1773-1843), married in
April 1793 Lady Augusta Murray, daughter of the Earl of Dunmore,
in Rome, and again at St. George's, Hanover Square, in December
of the same year. The marriage was dissolved by the Prerogative
Court without any reflection on her ladyship's honour in August
1794. On her death in 1830 the Duke proclaimed his marriage with
Lady Cecilia, daughter of the Earl of Arran and widow of Sir
George Buggin, who had assumed her mother's surname of Underwood.
She was created Duchess of Inverness in 1840.

CHAP. IV. NEGRO APPRENTICESHIP 127

Ambassadors and the American Minister were 1838.
present. The whole was an affair of great pomp,
and, I thought, good taste, except that certain
bills of fare, printed and coloured, were headed,
" Diner de son Excellence " ; on reading which I
happened to catch the eye of Ellice, and thought
1 should have burst out laughing.

On March 29 I heard Pease, the Quaker, second
Sir George Strickland's motion for the abolition
of negro apprenticeship. He spoke well ; but
concluded by we. -ping, and protesting that he
should endeavour to procure mercy for the blacks,
as he hoped to find mercy for himself at the Day
of Judgment. The House cheered him much, but
I owned to our friends on the Treasury Bench
that I did not like this eloquence. I thought it
bordered upon affectation; so did Palmerston and
Unwell ; ami I frit sure they were right, for there
tvas nothing to call for tears in that part of his
speech more than in any other portion of it, except
that it was near the end, and therefore might
produce a better effect.

llowick mentioned that Lord Brougham, now
the great agitator for emancipation, was, when
in Lord Grey's Cabinet of 1833, the principal
promoter of the apprenticeship system ! Gladstone
concluded the debate the next day, in a masterly
-ptMH'h of three hours.

March 31. — At to-day's Cabinet meeting we
agreed to support Charles Buller's Controverted
Elections Bill ; but referred the nomination of the

128 LONDON CHAP. IV.

1838. legal assessors to our law officers. The Lord
Chancellor mentioned three names, amongst whom
was my cousin, Henry Hobhouse. Lord Melbourne
said he was a narrow-minded man. I assented,
knowing what Melbourne meant ; but I said that
a narrow-minded man would do well enough to
advise our Election Committees. Melbourne re-
joined that my cousin would give an opinion
against a man because he was not respectable,
and lived a loose life. I thought this was not
unlikely ; but I Avas rather amused at discovering
what it was that our chief thought the symptom
of a narrow mind.

After the Cabinet broke up I went to Brooks's,
and heard read a violent letter from Brougham,
denouncing the Government as an ephemeral
power, supported only by Court favour, and pro-
mising to assist in getting rid of us on his return
from Paris. The letter was addressed to the
Delegates of the Emancipators of the Blacks.

April 1. — I went to call on Sir Francis Burdett,
as I had promised him to do. He received me
most kindly ; at first we talked about hunting and
riding, and our old exploits of that kind. He
said he could ride as well as ever, but could not
fall as well. He complained of frequent attacks
of gout, which, however, never annoyed him when
he lived abstemiously, and added that he should
do very well if his mouth was sewed up like a
ferret's. He told me that slave apprentices were
not worse off than the poor in some of the work-

CHAP. IV. ROYAL ASIATIC SOCIETY 129

houses; and that it would be as easy to make a 1838.
case against some overseers of the poor as against
the West India planters. He then fell into strong
invectives airainst the new Poor Law, and said it
was the only tiling that made him apprehensive
of a rising of the poor against the rich.

From Sir Francis Burdett I went to Lord
Durham, who hinted that his friends thought he
was sent out of the way, on purpose, by the
Government. By degrees he got into better
humour, and we called on the Duke of Sussex,
\\liu was ill. The Duke of Hamilton was with
him. The good man talked in his usual significant
strain, seeing and foreseeing everything. His
apartment was filled with all sorts of articles —
dozens of coach- whips, and eighteen watches in
one case. Their constant ticking was not agree-
able.

On Wednesday, April 4, I again had an
audience of Her Majesty ; she was most gracious
and ]> leasing. I presented her with a petition
from the Royal Asiatic Society, praying for apart-
ments and a grant of money; and I requested
H.M. to permit me to speak to Lord Duncannon
and Spring Rice on the subject. I added that
H.M.'s Treasury could not afford to make presents
of large sums. She smiled, and then told me
that she had not yet signed the draft of the letter
to the Regent of the Carnatic, because she did not
know where her signature ought to be placed.
She asked me whether she might keep the letter

VOL. v 17

130 LONDON CHAP. IV.

1838. from the said Regent, which I had sent to her, in
the embroidered case; and she added, with a
laugh, " They won't let me keep the letters sent
through the Foreign Office. I have to send them
all back again." I said that was very hard upon
Her Majesty, and she might keep the Regent's
letter, if she pleased.

I dined this day with my old friend, Lord
Langdale. David Baillie was there, the Miss
Berrys, the Howicks, and the beautiful Lady
Falkland, King William's daughter.

April 7. — I attended a Council summoned to
make preparations for the Queen's Coronation.
A conversation took place about the Church
service at the Coronation, and the length of the
Sermon, at which the Archbishop and the Bishops
laughed. I asked what it was, and was told that
it was at a remark made by Lord Melbourne, who
said, half aside, " The fellows now never preach
less than an hour and a half." The Bishop of
London, who told me this, added that he was
afraid Lord Melbourne did not go to church
much, otherwise he would have known that
sermons were not usually so long as that.

The clever Bishop Blomfield laughed when he
told me this ; and I ventured to inquire of him
what was the usual length of a sermon in Eng-
land. He replied about half an hour in London,
adding that attention could not be kept alive
much beyond that time ; as to the Coronation
sermon, he had preached the last himself, and it

CHAP. IV. THE BATTLE OF WATERLOO 131

was only twelve minutes long. The Bishop was isaa
amused at the joviality of Lord Melbourne, and
asked me if our Cabinet Councils were conducted
in that manner.

FROM DIARY.

April 30. — The Coronation has been postponed
to June 28, in consequence of certain members of
the Royal Family signifying they could not
attend on the anniversary of the death of George
IV.

FROM BOOK, " RECOLLECTIONS."

On Wednesday, May 2, I went to the Levee ; it
was very full. Pozzo di Borgo was there, and
spoke to me a good deal about the battle of
Waterloo, at which, as our neighbours say, he
assisted. He confirmed the fact that the Duke
of UVllin^ton was not taken by surprise ; "But,"
said Pozzo, " I will tell you who were taken by
surprise — the Prussians." He went on to say
that, from the moment the English began to
march d<>\\ii the hill, the French fled before
them, and made no resistance; there was no
manu'iivring, the English marched as at a review
— all forward — the French running before them.
At Brussels the report was that the battle was
lost, and Pozzo could scarcely persuade any one to
helieve to the contrary. He had some difficulty
in find ing some one to take a letter to the
Emperor Alexander, who was at Heidelberg. At

132 LONDON CHAP. IV.

1838. last he saw a subaltern officer, and said to him,
" Take this bit of paper, set out immediately, and
do not stop until you have given it to the
Emperor. Do this, and I make you a captain."
Pozzo, looking at the large picture of Victoria
at St. James's, said to me, "There was a battle
gained before it began " ; and he added, " Welling-
ton est n6 pour la guerre, comme un cheval pour
la course, ou un chien pour la chasse — c'est sa
nature."

May 6. — I dined with Sir John (Mr. Justice)
Williams. The Duke of Cleveland, a very agree-
able gentleman, and his Duchess, still looking
handsome, were of the party. Mr. Standish, who
had just arrived from Paris, told us that Lord
Brougham, on coming to Paris the other day,
ordered the postilions to drive him to the Tuileries,
that he might report his arrival to the King. It
was half -past eleven, and His Majesty had gone
to bed.

On the evening of May 10 I went to the first
ball given by Her Majesty at Buckingham Palace.
The Queen danced a good deal, and sat up until
four o'clock in the morning.

Thursday, May 17, the Queen's birthday was
kept. I went to the Drawing-room, where was a
great crowd. I shook hands, for the first time
since her accession, with Miss Angela Burdett-
Coutts, as she was then called. She gave me a
most pleasing reception.

I had a full-dress dinner-party in honour of the

CUAP. IV. TOM MOORE AND SYDNEY SMITH 133

day. This was a novelty. The President and 1838.

• •retaries of the India Board, on former birth-
days, dined with the Colonial Secretary; but I
thought we were entitled to a dinner of our own.

I went after wards to a crush of full-dress folks
at I/msd'.wne House, where, for the first time, I
heard the celebrated Persian! sing.

May 22. — Sir Eardley Wilmot brought forward
his motion for the immediate and unconditional
emancipation of the negroes. The numbers, when
we divided, wore 96 to 93 — at which a great shout
was raised from the benches behind us, particularly
l»y O'Connell. We were much discomfited, Russell
more so than I had ever seen him.

Wilmot left the House with his Quaker friends,
and oYomiell adjourned to a tavern in Palace
Yard, where it was proposed, we were told, to offer
up prayers for the success of the night. This,
h'-wever, was stopped 1>\ O'Connell inquiring, " If
it would look well to pass a vote of thanks to God
Almighty?"

I dined at Lansdowne House, May 23, with a
large party, to meet the Duke of Sussex. Tom
Moon* was of the party, and I had a good deal of
conversation with him respecting some of Sydney
Smith's recent performances. There was a good
deal of truth iu Moore's criticism on the life and
writings of the reverend author, who had lately
fallen foul of almost every member of the Govern-
ment, except John Russell.
Moore told me that S.S. now denied that he was

134 LONDON CHAP. IV.

1838. the author of " Peter Plymley's Letters." " If
that be so," said Moore, " S.S. has written nothing
worth talking about." Moore told me that he had
remonstrated with S.S. for attacking those members
of the Government with whom he lived on friendly
terms ; and he added that Sydney denied that he
did live on those terms with any of us. I recorded
this as a specimen of the intercourse subsisting
between wits and party authors.

Lady Cecilia Underwood dined with us, and I
remarked that Lord Lansdowne led her out before
the Duchess of Somerset and the Marchioness of
Breadalbane ; although Lady Lansdowne, on leav-
ing the dinner-table, called on the Duchess of
Somerset first to move away. Which of the two,
my lord or my lady, was right in their table of
precedence, I never inquired from that day to this.
The Duke of Sussex was full of his approaching
dinner to the Queen. He told me that he should
have seventeen rooms open for the reception of
company ; and that he had invited eight hundred
guests to his evening party. I could not help
thinking that there might be some slight connection
between this reception and Mr. Gillon's motion for
an increase of H.R.H.'s salary.

May 25. — At the House of Commons to-day
Peel spoke, and joked, and laughed at his own
jokes. He was much cheered, except by Lord
Stanley, who hung down his head, as if aware that
his leader was exposing himself. I thought Peel
a little the worse, or the better, for wine. He was

CHAP. IV. THE SLAVE TRADE 135

dressed as for a lady's party, and had come in very 1838.
l:it«>. At last, when he had said something very
absurd, I could not help saying, across the table,
" My dear Sir Robert ! " which he took very good-
naturedly, and laughed heartily.

At the Cabinet, May 26, Russell told us that
a change of Ministers was at hand. He himself
will be content with the Great Seal. Lord Lynd-
huist must be at the head of affairs, as neither
IVel nor Wellington is anxious for that eminence.
O'Connell must have office in Ireland. Having
little business on hand, we amused ourselves with
the conjectures of our learned friend.

Hay 28. — Sir George Grey moved our resolution
that negro apprenticeship should not cease before
the time fixed by law. AVilmot then moved an
amendment in the sense of his own resolution.
Russell concluded the debate, commenting on the
conduct of Brougham as it deserved, and saying it
\\as prompted by personal and party motives, and
degraded the cause it pretended to support. Sir
Winston Barren had before spoken of it in terms
of the utmost contempt and censure. He talked
of " wickedness of which the world hitherto had
found no example," and compared Brougham to
Satan.

June 2. — At our Cabinet to-day, Lord Palmerston
explained what he had been doing to persuade the
Portuguese to agree to a treaty for putting down
the Slave-trade. It appeared that the Portuguese
Government had no objection to this treaty, but

136 LONDON CHAP. IV.

1838. were afraid that their Cortes would not ratify the
agreement. We resolved to speak very strongly
to the Portuguese Cabinet, and to warn them that
we should take the law into our own hands, and
treat the slave-traders as pirates.

I dined with Lord Breadalbane, who had a large
party to meet the Duke of Sussex. Amongst
them was that wonderful old man, Lord Lynedoch,
who had a friendly controversy with Lord Melbourne
on the celebrated character of the British soldier,
said to have originated with the Duke of Welling-
ton. It was this : " Good on parade — irresistible
in action — worse than an enemy on the march."
Lord Lynedoch denied the latter part of this
description.

I remarked this day that our chief had a habit
of talking to himself. The Duke of Sussex
indulged himself with a cigar. Melbourne said
in an audible whisper, " That's smoking."

The next day, June 3, I dined with a very
agreeable party at Spring Rice's in Downing
Street. I met there Wilmot Horton, just re-
turned from his Governorship at Ceylon. He was
looking rather puffy, and too fat, but well. There
also was Palmerston and Lord Mulgrave, Lord
Clare (Byron's friend), and many others. The
evening was passed more pleasantly than usual
with such formalities. Our Chancellor of the
Exchequer was a very hospitable man, and full
of agreeable information on many subjects.

On June 10 I had a party to dine with me;

CHAP. IV. PUBLIC EXPENDITURE 137

amongst thorn were Sergeant Talfourd, Lytton 1838.
Bulwer, Pashley (author of " Travels in Greece"),
Cutler Ferguson, Sir Jasper Nicholls, Lord James
Hay, Lord Cranhourne, David Baillie, Henry
Shepherd, and my old colleague — for whom, in-
deed, I had made the dinner — Sir Franc- is Hurdett.
lie \\.is very agreeable, and told amusing stories
of Sheridan and other contemporaries. Ferguson
amused us with anecdotes of Jluskis^on, and also
<>f Talleyrand, Miraheaii, Sirves, and other remark-
able men of the early part of the great Revolution.
He told us of Dr. Jem, Huskisson's uncle, that he
said he had done his best to make his nephew a
democrat and an atheist. lie also told US that he
bra i-d Huskissnn make his speech against assignats
at the Club of 1789. He told us, too, that King
Louis Philippe said to him, at Paris, the other
day, " I recollect meeting you in the National
Assembly " ; and, said Ferguson, " he might have
added, ' at the Jacobin Club/ for we were both
thai

June 16. — At a Cabinet meeting to-day Spring
I! ice called our attention, very seriously, to the
state of our income and expenditure. He showed
us how the latter had increased gradually since
1835, and how great was the tendency to ex-
travairamv in every department. Howick backed
this complaint, and applied it especially to the
Colonial department, on which Lord Melbourne
remarked that, after all, we had the smallest
army and the largest colonies of any nation in

VOL. v 18

138 LONDON CHAP. IV.

1838. the world. He added that Government was asked
day after day to add to our colonies, and more
colonies required more troops. Ho wick insisted
on removing the regiment from St. Helena, and
again complained of the Colonial Office. Rice
repeated his remarks, and said we should be
brought to a standstill, more especially as the
present House of Commons was utterly reckless
of public expenditure. Lord Melbourne remarked
that had been the case with every House of
Commons in his time, except when the change in
the currency had alarmed the country gentlemen.

This day, June 17, I dined with our Chancellor
of the Exchequer, and met Macaulay, Lord
William Bentinck, the Duke of Richmond, Lord
Melbourne, and Lord John Russell.

Macaulay was in high spirits, and every one
seemed delighted with his talk. I heard Lord
"William Bentinck say, " He is a most extra-
ordinary man."

Macaulay had previously called upon me at
the India Board, and we had talked a good deal
on Indian affairs. He seemed to me not to have
the slightest taint of fanaticism, which somewhat
affected, in those days, our Indian servants.
Indeed, he told me that the religious controversies
which disturbed society at Madras had no exist-
ence in Bengal. Of the latter Presidency he
said laughingly, " that every man was either a
sinner or a saint " ; either a hypocrite or an
atheist — at least, so called by the opposite party.

CHAP. IV. WELLINGTON MEMORIAL 139

On June 18 I went to a full-dress ball at waa
the Palace. All the Ambassadors Extraordinary
and their wives were there, except, of course, the
French. This being the anniversary of Waterloo,
tin* Duke of Wellington and all his seventy
soldier guests were invited, and were present.
Jt appeared to me that the ball had better have
hem uiven on some other day. I heard the
French were offended at the mistake. A beautiful
Princess Schwartzenburg, and Countess Strogonoff,
the wives of the Russian and Austrian Ambassa-
dors, were pointed out to me. I thought there
were two or three of my own countrywomen
more lovely than either of them ; but I kept this
reflection to myself.

I had, at the Palace, a talk with the Duke of
Rutland on our Wellington Memorial. He told
me that when he and other members of our Sub-
committee waited on the Duke, to ask him to
sit fur the statue, the great soldier, in answering
them, faltered, and tears came into his eyes.

The Levee on June 20 was said to be the most
numerously attended ever seen. A crowd of
foreigners were present, and amongst them was
the Prince de Ligne, the best-looking, as I
thought, of them all ; he was the grandson of
my old Vienna host. Whilst at the Levee I had
a conversation with Lord Melbourne on the re-
cation of Sir H. Fane, Commander-in-Chief in
India. He asked me why Fane had resigned. I
told him for a very foolish reason — namely, that

140 LONDON CHAI>. IV.

1838. he was sixty years of age. Lord Melbourne said :
" It is not a foolish reason. Fox always said he
should retire from public life after sixty, but he
did not live to be sixty."

I proposed Pitzroy Somerset to succeed Sir
Henry Fane. " A very good man," replied Mel-
bourne ; " but our friends would make a great
outcry on the appointment ; they are such fools ! "
We had then some talk about Lord Wellesley
still pressing me to get a dukedom for him.
Lord Melbourne expressed himself in very strong
terms respecting the character of the applicant,
and called him " insatiable." Lord Lansdowne told
me, talking on the same subject, that it was an
old manoeuvre of the Marquess to get one thing
first, and then to make that favour a reason for
asking another. Indeed, he acted in this way
by me, for he said: "You got £20,000 for me
from the Court of Directors ; you ought now to
get a dukedom for me from the Queen."

I dined this day (June 20) with Lord Holland,
and after dinner we compared notes respecting
the resignation of Lord Sidmouth, when he was
driven from office and succeeded by William Pitt.
My records, derived chiefly from my father, an
intimate friend of Addington, tallied with what
Lord Holland had heard. If he had chosen to
stand his ground, he would in all probability
have not been outvoted ; but he was outwitted
and out-talked. Two or three of his colleagues
also behaved shamefully towards him. Lord

CHAP. IV. PREPARATIONS FOR CORONATION 141

Holland told me that he introduced Robert Smith 1838.
i Holms) and George Canning to Lord Shelburne
on the same day, and that Lord Shelburne pre-
ferred the first, saying, "Kc did not like the
otln-r; he had an unsteady eye." What this
meant 1 did not quite know, but that was the
reason assigned for preferring the inferior man.
To match this unhappy choice Lord Holland also
told me that when - and William Pitt were
introduced to Lord Shelburne, his lordship pre-
ferred - to Pitt. I thought the first was Lord
Sheffield, but I was not sure.

June 2:5.— I mri to the S.SJ5.S., and, to my
great surprise, met Lord Brougham, who, since
he had been made Lord Chancellor, had dis-
continued his attendance. He was very agree-
ahle, and, amongst other things, told us that what
offended (norge IV. most in Brougham's famous
speech on the (Queen's trial was his quotation
l ruin Milton, which seemed to insinuate that he
was shapeless and puffy.

DIAKV.

J")ie 27.— Walking in the streets to-day, I
found much dilliculty in getting along, from the
immense crowds and the preparation of scaffold-
ings t'ur spectators to see the Coronation procession.
I went into Hyde Park, and was exceedingly
struck with the arrangements for the Fair— about
litty acres covered with tents, divided into long
alleys, with every kind of show and booth, sur-

142 LONDON CHAP. IV.

1838. mounted by flags. I saw the tents of the artillery
and their guns in the Green Park, also producing
a very pleasing effect. A gigantic standard was
planted on the marble arch of Buckingham Palace,
and waved over the heads of the multitudes who
were watching for the Queen's daily drive in the
area below. The excitement, good-humoured but
intense, was such as I never saw before, and I
heard the same from every one.

FROM BOOK, " BECOLLECTIONS."

The Coronation took place on June 28. I got
up early, and at eight o'clock took my children
and their governess to the house of Lady Frances
Ley on Bichmond Terrace. I had some difficulty
in getting into the line of carriages, through the
barrier at the Haymarket, which was opened to
my House of Commons ticket. The streets were
thronged with carriages; the balconies and win-
dows and scaffoldings all full of well-dressed
people. The crowd in the streets consisted of
well-dressed people, and so far as I saw there
was no disturbance nor violence, either in word
or deed ; no swearing, no signs of drunkenness ;
so orderly a multitude I had never seen.

After I had deposited my children with their
aunt, I went on to Palace Yard, and was put
down at the great door of Westminster Hall.
Almost all the Privy Councillors not Peers were
with us and, like ourselves, in full drawing-room
dress, except that the white small-clothes were

CHAP. IV. THE CORONATION 143

not insisted upon. At half-past nine o'clock there 1838.
TON about five hundred M.P.'s in the House.
We had to wait sonic time without any amuse-
ment, except a little laughter at Mr. Fector's fine
velvet coat and Walter Campbell's naked legs-
The drawing out of the names of the county
members from covered glasses now began, and as
the names were called the members walked down
the House to the covered way across Parliament
Street, into Poets' Corner in the Abbey. My
place, as Member for Nottingham, did not give
me a good position ; I was, however, about half-
way up the lower gallery in our box, and what
I witnessed was moiv impressive than I could

y have imagined.

The wonderful beauty of the women in the Earl-
Marshai's and the Great Chamberlain's boxes, on
either hand of us, was absolutely overpowering.
i 'lie decorations of the Choir, and the dresses of
the Karl-Marshal's officers, and of many of the
\ i si tors, were gorgeous in the extreme. Prince
•ha/.y \\as ^littering in a blaze of diamonds.
i had seen many Courts and fine ceremonials,
hut nothing like what I saw on this day;
and I could not help saying to Sir Robert
who sat immediately below me, "What
a line* monarchy!" " Yes," said he, "thank
God for it!" lie told me that the scene was
live times more striking than the coronation of
George IV.

He fore the Queen came in, Marshal Soult, walk-

144 LONDON CHAP. IV.

1838. ing slowly up the Choir, produced the most
attention, and there was some clapping of hands ;
no other Ambassador was noticed. He was put in
the second row, and, apparently, did not like his
place, for he went away. Shortly afterwards,
however, he returned ; and Baron Bulow after-
wards told me that those who made the arrange-
ment, and placed the French Ambassador in the
second row, had acted upon the ceremonial as
settled at the Congress of Vienna.

We now heard the guns that announced the
departure of the Queen from Buckingham Palace.
This was at about ten o'clock, and, at twenty-five
minutes past eleven, a royal salute told us Her
Majesty had reached the Abbey door. Some time
was employed in marshalling the procession and
robing Her Majesty. At last we saw the Eoyal
line approaching ; the Princes and Princesses of
the Blood entered the Choir. The Queen followed ;
and, walking to the seat prepared for her, dropped
upon her knees and covered her face with her
arms on the crimson desk before her, and prayed.
I owned I was much affected, as were those near
me. One young Member of Parliament said,
" Poor young thing, I wonder what will be her
fate ! " But all the Members of Parliament were
not equally reverent. Two young fellows in-
dulged in very unbecoming jokes, in order to
annoy Sir Robert Inglis ; and I heard some one
behind us calling out, " Box-keeper, places ! " I
was afraid that the exclamation came from Mr.

CHAP. IV THE CORONATION CEREMONY 145

Sergeant Talfmird. I asked him if the drama was 1838.
as well played as his own Ion.

The ceremony proceeded; and, splendid as it
was, I thought it tiresome; even the music was
tedious, and Handel himself hardly compensated
for the fatigue I felt. I was not near enough to
see the actual crowning of my Queen; hut the
simultaneous rising of all the Peers, to place their
•nets on their heads, amidst shouts, and
trumpet^ and the roar of cannon, announced that
the deed of the day was done, and Victoria was
our crowned Queen. The representatives of all
Sovereigns of the civilised world seemed to look
down on the august ceremony with as much
interest as ourselves. Marshal Soult was eagerly
intent upon the scene. I saw him follow with
his eye the Duke of Wellington, the Royal Con-
stahle of the great occasion.

I stepped down two or three benches and saw
the Queen sitting in St. Edward's Chair with her
crown on. It was at this part of the ceremony
that she was presented with the Bible. After a
time she was enthroned on the Chair of State in
the midst of the Choir. The Prelates first, and
then the IVers, did homage by kissing her hand
and touching her crown. As the Duke of Wel-
lington performed this act there was a great shout
and a clapping of hands, and Soult again stretched
forward to gaze at him; so did the other Am-
bassadors.

One part of the ceremony appeared to me in
VOL. v 19

146 LONDON CHAP. IV.

1838. very bad taste ; but I was told it could not be
dispensed with. This was the throwing about
and the scrambling for the Coronation coins. This
lasted for some time, amidst much noise and con-
fusion ; some of the ladies of the Court were
pushed about close to the Queen. A handful of
coins was thrown into the Ambassador's box.

Magnificent as was the scene, and such as not
one of us would probably ever witness again,
several Members of Parliament went away an
hour before the conclusion of it — myself amongst
the rest. I got to Richmond Terrace without
much difficulty, and joined my children in the
temporary gallery fronting Parliament Street to
see the procession return from the Abbey. After
we had waited an hour and a half, the first
carriages of the procession, with a battalion of the
Guards, began to pass us. The sight without was
worthy of the spectacle within the Abbey. The
day was fine, and gleams of sunshine flashed upon
the cuirasses of the body-guard and the bayonets
of the infantry. The equipages of the Am-
bassadors, Ordinary and Extraordinary, many of
them were very splendid ; but no one, of all these
grand visitors, was cheered except Marshal Soult,
and he was very much applauded, not only by the
people in the streets, but by well-dressed spec-
tators and ladies in the balconies. He was in a
carriage richly painted, with glass panels, and
distinctly seen. He bowed repeatedly and re-
spectfully as he passed. The Queen closed the

CHAT. IV. O'CONNELL HISSED 147

procession; she wore her crown, and carried her 1838.
so-ptre and her orb steadily and gracefully; but
she managed to acknowledge the affectionate
greetings and salutations which saluted her on
every side, around, above, and below, without
discomposure. It was an affecting scene; many
Cried, " God bless hoi ! '

Excepting the appearance of Mr. O'Connell,
Avhich raised a hiss from the Indies and gentlemen
in our galleries, nothing occurred which was not
perfectly in accordance with this great national
pageant. I remarked the same orderly good-
h amour in the vast masses, which moved on
with the procession, as I had seen in the
morning. Neither the soldiers nor the police
were called upon to interfere, so far as I
saw, even oiu There was but one opinion
pronounced — namely, that the Coronation, so much
decried beforehand, had gone off with complete
success.

I got my children away with little difficulty,
and reached home by six o'clock. I walked in
Hyde 1'ark, and looked at the Fair. The same
good-humoured contentment prevailed there as in
the streets. After dinner I went to the house of
Lord Methuen, in Park Street, and took my
children to see the fireworks. I also went to the
ball at the Duke of Wellington's, and made my
bow to his Grace. Several of the Coronation
Ambassadors were there. So passed this long-
looked-for day.

US LONDON CHAP. IV.

1838. In the evening of this day, June 29, a full-dress
party dined with me. Amongst them was General
Ventura, Commander-in-Chief of Hunjeet Singh's
army in the Punjaub ; he was a native of Provence,
and had served under Napoleon, before the
Empire, and after. Giuseppino Albrizzi, one of
the Chamberlains of the Emperor of Austria, was
also one of my guests. He was almost a boy
when I left him at Venice ; he was now purblind,
and wore spectacles, and had lost his front teeth ;
but he was as mild and pleasing as ever, and
reminded me of the days when Byron and I
frequented the little drawing-room where his
mother held her conversazioni.

I went afterwards to a full-dress party at Lans-
downe House. All the Ambassadors, Ordinary
and Extraordinary, were there. Soult was much
gazed at, and followed about. The general talk
was of the success of the Coronation. Prince
Esterhazy came to me, and, holding my hand for
a minute or two, assured me of the great delight
the whole proceeding had afforded him, as giving
a happy prospect for the British monarchy and
the repose of the world.

June 30. — This evening I dined with Marshal
Soult in Portland Place. There were about thirty
guests. When I came into the room the Marshal
was standing near the door, and made me a bow.
I returned it, and said I hoped he had not been
fatigued by his attendance at the Coronation. He
replied that it was impossible to be fatigued, par

CHAP. IV. ' MABSHAL SOULT 149

nne si belle cerenwnie. It was the first time I 1838.
had been near him. He seemed to me a pleasing-
look in «; old man, with high cheek bones, and
lively, intelligent eye ; his scanty grey hairs were
combed over his head and forehead, and his whole
appearance was like that of a Scotch country
gentleman. His right leg was " bandied/1 as it
appeared to me, not by accident, but, as I was
told, from his birth. He was quiet and simple in
his manner; during dinner-time he spoke but
little. He was plainly dressed, with a black
nrekeloth, and his red ribbon of the Legion of
Honour was scarcely seen.

Lord Grey was there and looked very much
dissatisfied with something into which I did not
inquire ; he scarcely spoke a word to any one.
Tin1 dinner was bad and cold, the attendants
numerous and gorgeously dressed. The chief
iittentions of the Marshal were directed to
Lord Holland; the Marshal walked to the head
of the staircase to take leave of him. M. de
Boiirqiieny, Secretary to Sebastiani's Embassy,
i nt roil need me to the Marquis of Dalmatia, the
eldest son of Soult. "With him I had a good deal
of conversation, chiefly relative to the cordial
reception iriven to the Marshal at the Coronation.
lie expressed himself in grateful terms, and said
that the impression would never be lost either
upon his father or upon France.

July 2. — Going home with Lord John Russell,
we had a good deal of conversation on the strange

150 LONDON CHAP. IV.

1838. conduct of Lord Durham in Canada. He had
appointed a man of a very damaged character one
of the secretaries of his Government, and also an
Executive Councillor. The subject had heen
taken up in the Lords by Lord Wharncliffe,
and Lord Melbourne had confessed that he had
heard of the appointment "with surprise and
concern," and trusted it would not finally take
place.

July 7. — I took occasion to mention, this day,
to my colleagues, the ridiculous clause in the
" Indian Labourers " Bill, which had recently
come down to the Commons from the Lords. It
provided that places of worship should be provided
for them wherever they were settled. Lord Mel-
bourne seemed to doubt whether anything so
absurd could be found in a Government Bill.
But there was the clause, drawn up after a plan
sent to me by Mr. Groom, solicitor to the India
Board.

I dined with Lord John Russell. Six of the
Ambassadors Extraordinary were present. Count
Strogonoff, Prince Putbus, and Count Miraflores,
were on his right hand ; Prince Schwartzenburg,
the Duke of Palmella, and Count Capella Bianca,
were on his left. Lord Howick, Mr. Lister,
Charles Gore, Codrington, and myself made up
the rest of the party. The conversation was
chiefly in French about balloons, interrupted by
Codrington's chatter and request to Strogonolf
and others to drink with him a VAnglaise.

CHAP. IV SPAIN AND PORTUGAL 151

Palmella said ho recollected being in Rome in 1838.
1801, when the news of the coronation of Napoleon
\\as brought from Paris, by a balloon, in twenty-
four hours. I sat next to Miraflores ; he talked to
me of Mendizabal,1 whom he described as a quick,
smart, adventurous person, but without any real
character, no " fonds," no perseverance, no
principle. He ended by saying that Spain wanted
only one thing — " money."

When we went upstairs Palmella introduced
himself to me, and asked me about my visit with
Ix>rd Byron to Lisbon in 1809. He attributed the
late disorders in Portugal to those whom he chose
to call French vagabonds. Talking of England,
he said, " We were ancient revolutionists, and
knew how to manage changes without much
mischief; nevertheless, he did not think we could
remain much longer in our present condition.
1 lie French certainly could not; they would either
have elective monarchy or a republic, or would
fall hack into despotism." I ventured to say, we
should never have revolution here. He replied,
"Jo ne dirai pas j,i,/m As- ; peut-etre pas de notre
temps." His opinion was, I saw, that reforms
would be forced by the people, quietly, even upon
the i;re;it despotic States.

1 went away much pleased with the evening.
The foreigners were in stars and ribbons, and,

ftnl of Queen Isabella 1 1. of Spain in 1835,

in M.iy ls;j6, ivappuint.-d Finamv Minister in September,
and again dismissed in August 1837.

152 LONDON CHAP. IV.

1838. excepting Codrington, our host, etc., we English
formed a marked contrast with them, so far as
fineries were concerned.

On Monday, July 9, Mr. Sanford, M.P. for
Somersetshire, lent me a charger, and I rode into
Hyde Park to see the Queen review the Guards—
about 4,700 men. The Ambassadors Ordinary and
Extraordinary were present. Marshal Soult was
near the Queen's carriage.

I went down the line after the Queen. The
troops afterwards marched by Her Majesty. The
Duke of Wellington rode at the head of his
regiment, the Grenadier Guards; and I saw the
French Generals pointing him out and looking
very earnestly at him.

The marching of the infantry and artillery, and
the file-firing, with which the review concluded,
were admirable. Our cavalry, that is, the 10th
Hussars and the Lancers, did not perform quite
so well. Sir Henry Hardinge remarked to me
that our infantry and artillery were perfect—
the cavalry worth nothing. Lord Uxbridge told
me that Soult had expressed himself in terms
of the highest admiration at the sight. He
said that there was not a man nor a horse of
the field-artillery who was not fit for a picture;
as for the infantry, it was superfluous to praise
them.

The Queen was much applauded ; so was Soult,
and others who were mistaken for Soult. The
Duke of Wellington, after he had passed with his

CHAP. IV. BROUGHAM ATTACKS THE DUKE 153

reirinient, kept out of the way, and rode on his 1838.
chestnut charger to look at the line drawn up.
I heard lie did this out of a delicate feeling
towards Soult and his French suite.

July 10. — I went into the House of Lords and
heard Brougham make a furious onslaught on the
Duke of Wellington, for not voting with him for
producing the instructions to a naval officer re-
lative to the seizing of arms on hoard a Sardinian
vessel shipped for the use of Don Carlos. The
Duke recommended their Lordships not to insist
upon seeing the instructions, and then went away
to dine with .Marshal Soult, and was followed by
^•ven or eight others, so that, when the division
took plao», the numbers were even, and, as a
tie is negative in the Lords, the motion was
lost. Vernon Smith told me that Brougham
was heard to say, "The Abbey yearns for him,"
meaning for the Duke of Wellington! I told
this to Russell, who added, "And Bedlam for
him!"

I dined, on July 13, at the great dinner given
to the Foreign Ambassadors at the Mansion House.
I arrived in time to see Marshal Soult received by
the Lord Mayor and by the Duke of Wellington,
who shook him cordially by the hand and talked
some time to him.

I was seated between the Speaker and the
Chancellor of the Exchequer; next to Rice was
Labouchere, and next to him was Brougham ;
immediately opposite to whom sat Lord Melbourne

VOL. v 20

154 LONDON CHAP. IV.

1838. and Lord John Russell. I afterwards learned
that he (B.) had refused to sit in the place assigned
to him amongst the Peers, and said he would
sit with the Judges. Accordingly, he took the
card from the plate reserved for G. S. Byng, and
put himself next to Justice Littledale. He did
not speak a word to Rice, or Russell, or Melbourne.
Just as the health of the Queen's Ministers were
given, the Duke of Nemours and his suite went
away, and caused some confusion, so that Mel-
bourne, who had risen to return thanks, sat
down again, as all of us did. Presently came a
messenger from the Lord Mayor, saying, "My
Lord Melbourne, the Lord Mayor is waiting for
you . ' ' The notice of this was hastily acknowledged :
"D — n him, let him wait " ; but Melbourne soon
rose, and spoke well, and was much cheered,
though I saw Lord Aberdeen, who was opposite,
smile. The Speaker, who had risen to return
thanks for some health, on sitting down again,
fell back on the ground, and then Aberdeen and
Haddington burst into a loud laugh. I picked
up Mr. Speaker, who behaved decorously. He
was in full Court-dress. The next toast was " his
Grace the Duke of Dalmatia and his Grace the
Duke of Wellington," an absurd mode of coupling
the healths of two such men; but quite suited
to the City taste.

The Duke of Wellington first returned thanks*
and said some handsome things of Soult, which
Soult more than repaid. I was amused by the

CHAP. IV. BANQUET AT MANSION HOUSE 1 .".">

reporter, who took down Soult's speech,
close to him, and was so charmed that he continued
to write, and cry " Univo ! " and clap hands at
tin* same time. I read the next day that he was
a French teacher at the London University, or
King's College.

CHAPTER V

less. FKOM BOOK, "RECOLLECTIONS."

On July 22 I dined with the Duke of
Palmella. The party was very large ; amongst
them was Lord and Lady Jersey, Lord and Lady
Stuart de Rothesay, Count Flahaut and Lady
Keith, Lord Seaforth, Lord John Russell, the
Chancellor of the Exchequer, General Sebastiani
and his wife, Baron Moncorvo, and several Portu-
guese gentlemen attached to the Embassy. I
thought my host Palmella the same agreeable
personage that I had at first found him to be.
The dinner was worthy of the occasion, but, as
usual, dull. Luckily, I sat between Spring Rice
and Baron Moncorvo, both of whom were lively
and amusing. Before dinner Sebastiani took me
aside, and amongst other things he said he thought
our Eoot-Guards were the best troops in the world,
and he repeated this opinion.

I had afterwards a long and amusing conversa-
tion with Lord Stuart de Rothesay. His strictures
on the Ambassadors Extraordinary were almost
laughable. Excepting Soult and Palmella, not
one of them was worth notice. One of them, with
a great name, was the son of a moneylender. Even

156

CHAP. V. DINNER AT THE PALACE 157

1'almella1 came in for his share of criticism; he 1838.
over to assert his claim to some money
to him, and was selected because he was the
only man \\lio could make it worth his while to
accept so ex pensive a mission. My lord did not
spare all the ladies ; for, on my remarking how

handsome Lady looked, " Yes," said he, "but

LC<> and see her in the morning! "

There was a full-dress dinner on July 25, at
i he Palace. The Queen entertained the Foreign
Amba»ador.s, Ordinary and Extraordinary, and
their \\ives, also the Foreign Ministers and their
families, hesides some other guests. Amongst
them was Lord Grey, who was more than usually
out of temper, and would hardly deign to notice
any of us, not even Russell, who looked in vain
for a recognition.

We dined in the long gallery. It was the first
occasion that it had heen so used. The sight was
very striking ; hut Colonel Cavendish observed
that Charles Murray did not know how to decorate
a table. ![e on^lit to have sent to Windsor for all
the Royal gold plate. I thought it quite fine
enough. There were covers for 103, and 100 came.
I sat next to the Marquis of Dalmatia,8 and had
some interesting talk with him. He defended the
Spanish policy of Louis Philippe; but confessed
that our insular position enabled us to take a more

1 The Due de Palmella, Portuguese Envoy. He was Queen

M. nit's Ministrr, who was somewhat abruptly dismissed by her in
( ), tol» r Is n;. owing to his inability to raise a loan.
* ^iur>h;il Suult's son.

158 LONDON CHAP. V.

1838. decided part, " of which," said he, " you would he
glad to be rid, if you could." I asked him,
"What are the politics of the present French
Cabinet?" He answered, "None." "Well,"
replied I, " by what name do they go ? " " None."
"What are Mole's politics ? " "I do not know,
and he does not know himself." Speaking of
his father, he said it was not likely that he would
come into office until the Spanish question
was settled. I asked him who was the best
speaker in the Chamber of Deputies. He replied,
" Berry er, beyond all doubt ; he was the Mirabeau
of the day — superior, in his way, to our Brougham.
He was corrupt and profligate in every way." I
asked what were his objects. " That," answered
the Marquis, rubbing his finger and thumb to-
gether, " Money, money ; he is paid for all he
says." I did not ask him whether he talked of
Berry er as a legal advocate, or as a politician and
parliamentary orator.

The Queen was in high spirits. Colonel Caven-
dish told me that she was delighted with the pro-
ject of giving this dinner, and said to him that
" there must be a hundred at table, at the least."
I saw no Conservatives there, except the Duke
of Wellington.

I had a little conversation with the Duke of
Wellington about the testimonial to be erected to
him. He confessed that there was some appear-
ance of a little manoeuvring in the management of
it. As for himself, he was the last man to give an

CHAP. V. AFFAIRS IN PERSIAN GULF

opinion, and he would sit to any one appointed by
the Committee. He added that he thought now
the choice of Wyatt was inevitable.

I talked with Marshal Soult on his late visit to
Manchester, Liverpool, and Birmingham, with
which, in his quiet way, he expressed himself
much delighted. The Marshal, with his son-in-law
Do Mornay, came to the House of Commons the
next day, and I took them under the gallery.
\Vhilst 1 was sp"aking to them, Mr. Baines, M.P.
lor Leeds, rose, and asked me several questions
ahout idolatry in India. I gave answers which
were much cheered, and said to be satisfactory.

J»ly 30. — I went to a Council at St. James's
1 'a lace, and had an audience of the Queen
afterwards, to livelier Majesty some information
respecting the expedition to the Persian Gulf.1 I
informed the Queen I had spoken to the Russian
Am1 r on the subject, and that he had denied

all intention, on the part of his Government, of
count en ancini; the Persian movement towards the
Indus. The Queen smiled, and said that "of
course the Russians would deny participating in
the aggression ; but their words made very little
difference, except when founded on facts."

In Committee of Supply on this evening a

1 The Shah of Persia, instigated by Russia, had laid siege to Herat,
in spite of the active efforts of Mr. (afterwards Sir John) MacNeill.
In June Mr. MaoNi-ill bruk.- off official relations with the Shah, and
asked for military aid. A >null Uritish force was sent to Karrack,
in the Persian (Julf, and the Shah thereupon conceded all the
«i. maiuls of England The whole story is fully related in Sir J.
MacNeill'slife.

160 LONDON CHAP. V.

1838. debate took place on the grant to Maynooth
College, which I should not have noticed had it
not heen for a humorous speech by Daniel
O'Connell. The grant was opposed by Colonels
Verner, Sib thorp, and Perceval ; and O'Connell
parodied, in reference to them, the famous lines,
" Three poets, in three distant ages born," in
this way :

" Three Colonels, in three distant counties born,
Did Lincoln, Sligo, and Armagh adorn ;
The first in face, the next in jollity,
The third excelled in dull sobriety.
The force of Folly could no further go ;
To beard the first she shaved the other two."

There was much laughter at this sally ; more, I
thought, than it was worth. Nevertheless, it was
good nonsense, although bad English, for "to
beard " does not mean " to give a beard." The
excuse for this was, that the three Colonels had
made a violent attack on the Catholic priesthood.

We have had several angry debates in the
House of Commons in discussing the Lords'
amendments of our Municipal Corporation Bill.
Russell spoke with great vigour and determina-
tion, stating his unwillingness to bow his neck
to the yoke of the House of Lords. On this Sir
James Graham rose, and taunted Russell with his
allusion to " the yoke of the House of Lords," and
asked him how that tallied with what was going
on now in that Assembly, wrho were, he said, at
that moment engaged in passing the Government

CHAP. V. FISH DINNKIi AT BLACKWALL 101

Tithe Hill without appmpriat inn. He concluded 1838.
by saving that the Lords would best preserve
their majority by preserving their principles.
To this our friends n-plied only by a volley of
murmurs and groans; and, to the credit of our
iilar opponents, it must be told that little or
no applau>e was heard when Graham sat down.

At our Fish Dinner at Blackwall, on August 8,
we had the usual amusement, if so it might be
called, in the good-humoured pleasantry of our
Attorney-General, Campbell, who proposed that
his " brother " Ball, Attorney-General for Ireland,
should be allowed to give the health of Her
Majesty's Ministers, and dwell on their united
and individual merits; not forgetting their con-
sistency and steadfast adherence to their prin-
ciples, as exemplified by their standing so
manfully by their Appropriation clause. Lord
Melbourne did not much relish the joke, and
Lord Lansdowne looked seriously angry. So we
went on fooling and befooled, until Glenelg made
a serious speech, and said lie hoped we might all
be in the same place next year, and behave
towards each other as sincerely as we had hither-
to done, adding that this was the only considera-
tion that would induce him to remain connected
with us.

inst 1C.— Lord Holland told me that Lord
Durham, although very unyielding about trifles,
was more tractable in serious matters than could
be expected from a man of his spirit and temper.

VOL. v 21

162 ERLE STOKE — WINDSOR CHAP. V.

1838. I found that our chief entertained a very un-
favourable opinion of Durham ; in fact, he talked
of him as of a man on whom no dependence could
be placed; and who, in that respect, was worse
than Brougham. Lord Durham has his faults,
that is certain ; but I cannot say that I think so
ill of him as Melbourne does.

August 17. — I did not witness the close of this
wearisome session, but passed the afternoon at
Eichmond. Sir Robert Inglis informed me that
the House had been sitting 173 days, during
which time 1,134 hours had been occupied with
public business, and no less than 64 new Bills
had been introduced since July 1.

I took leave of Lord Melbourne, who promised
to pay me a visit if he came to Bo wood. He told
me that he was more nervous about public
matters when Parliament was not sitting than
during the session, although he confessed that it
was a nuisance to be badgered by every ignorant
or impertinent member who chose to ask questions.

I went to Erie Stoke the next day, and thought
it a great exploit to get there in eight hours from
Paddington.

On Saturday, October 6, I left Erie Stoke and
went to Windsor Castle. Her Majesty was in
excellent health and spirits, and was looking
handsome. The Queen went out riding, and
horses were brought out for the Ministers, but I
was too much fatigued, and did not accompany
the Queen. The dinner-party consisted of the

CHAP. v. AT WINDSOR CASTLE

Minivers tin- Princess Augusta, and H.M.'s 1838.
hoiisrhold. I was fortunate in beinu: seated next
to l/idy L\tt"lton, Lord Spencer's sister, a very
Agreeable lady. Lord Melbourne sat next to the
(^uern mi one sid»\ and the Lord Chancellor on
the other. She was extremely irnicious to her
i: nests. Our principal talk was of railroads.

On Sunday I attended Her Majesty to St.

_re's Chapel. The singing was l)eantii'nl ;

hut it made the service intolerably long. The

preacher was my old Twickenham friend, Proby

—a very poor performer.

In the drawing-room, after dinner, the Queen
and Lord Melbourne looked over a fine collection
of prints, Lord Melbourne explaining the Latin
inscriptions to Her Majesty.

The next morning I rode out with the Queen,
and enjoyed the magnificent forest scenery, with-
out a rival in the world. The Queen rode between
Lord Melbourne and Colonel Cavendish, with Sir
George Quen tin in attendance behind. H.M. was
attended also by Miss Quentin, who prepared her
horses for her, and was attached to the Court.
1 heard from the Baroness Lehzen that the Queen
had had a fall recently. Colonel Cavendish spoke
to me very seriously of this accident, and I advised
him to speak to Lord Melbourne about it. The
Colonel shook his head, as if he thought his
advice would not be well received. I was well
mounted on a horse called the " Viscount," trained
for the Queen. I thought it too lively; and in

164 WINDSOR — ERLE STOKE CHAP. V.

1838. those days I rode pretty well, and was able to
form a judgment on that matter.

I left Windsor Castle on October 9, and on
October 19 I heard that Lord Durham had re-
signed his mission to Canada. A few days after
I received a copy of Lord Durham's despatch.
Amongst other things he stated that Turton l was
recommended to him by a member of the Cabinet.
He meant by me ; I have already told the fact,
and need not repeat the refutation of this mistake.
I did not quite make out that he had actually
resigned. Indeed, some of his puffers gave out
that the Queen had written an autograph letter
to him requesting him not to resign — a pure
fiction.

On the night of Sunday, October 28, a furious
hurricane blew down eighteen large trees in the
park at Erie Stoke and adjoining meadows, and
lifted part of the lead roof off the mansion. I
had not recollected such a storm since November
1831.

On Saturday, November 3, came the sad in-
telligence of the death of Lady John Russell
at Brighton. I wrote a letter to Lord Tavistock
on the subject, and begged him, if he approved,
to show it to Russell. I heard from Lord
Melbourne that it was a dreadful blow ; but that
he trusted to Russell's courage and sense of duty
to enable him to bear it.

Dining this day, November 21, at Lord

1 See note on page 173.

CHAP. V. LORD DURHAM'S MISGIVINGS 1 <'»•">

Holland's house in Savile Row, I met Lord 1838.
Melbourne, Luttrcll, Le Marchant, Spencer Cow-
per, George Anson, and Mr. Allen ; to me a most
agreeable day. Lord Melbourne gave a very
drcidrd opinion of the general incomplete educa-
tion of boys educated at public schools; yet he
confessed that many entertained opinions very
diU'erent from his, and told us that Lord Wellesley
was so passionately fond of Eton that his great
ambition was to be Provost of Eton. Lord
Holland gave us several instances of Mr. Canning's
quickness in writing Latin verses off-hand.

In the evening Madame Sebastiani came, and
we were also joined by Pozzo di Borgo, Dedel,
and Alava, the Spanish Minister. Alava after-
wards talked of the marked politeness of the
speakers in the Cortes, which, he said, was singular
when contrasted with their readiness to cut throats
out of doors, or when compared with the violence
of our House of Commons orators.

Lady Holland told me that she had been told
by Count Mole* that he considered his Ministry
in much the same position as ours — viz. supported
by a small but sure majority. Their trying
question was the cultivation of beetroot, which,
absurd as it sounded to English ears, was of
considerable importance in France.

This same day I heard from Lord Durham
that he was coming home immediately. He
characterised the proceedings of the Peers as
"the height of criminality and folly," and pre-

166 LONDON CHAP. V.

1838. dieted an outbreak in the winter. His fears had
been excited by a despatch from Pox, our Minister
at Washington, announcing an organisation of
American sympathisers, to the number of 40,000,
prepared to invade the Canadas. Durham con-
cluded that he ought to come home, and save
his country in Parliament ; " the only place," so
he said, " in which he could be useful."

At a Cabinet dinner, at Lord Melbourne's, all
of us appeared very forbearing in open conversa-
tion ; but in private conversation, one with
another, we began to talk of Lord Durham, and
there was no difference of opinion amongst us —
all condemned his conduct. Indeed, no defence
could be made for it. In the first place, he was
coming away a month before he intended ; next,
he had given up his announced intention of re-
turning through the United States. He then
told us that nothing could be done in the colony,
after issuing a Proclamation almost inciting a
rebellion, and leaving the colony to be administered
by the military authorities. All these proceedings,
we heard, were condemned by every right-thinking
man.

November 24. — I dined at the S.S.B.S., in our
new room at the new Lyceum Theatre. It was
rather a memorable day. I found Hastie, M.P.,
alone ; then came Henry Stephenson, with Luttrell
as a guest. My friend Stephenson was in a fume,
and said that he heard Lonsdale, the painter,
one of the best men of the Society, was about

CHAP. V. STEPHENSON AND BROUGHAM 1C7

to brin^ Brougham with him, and that, if he 1838.
did, he (Stephenson) should walk away. I re-
monstrated against this proceeding, and said no
one had a right to disturb a social meeting with
reference to private disagreements. In answer
to this, Stephenson urged the base conduct of
Brougham to Lord Durham, and, whilst we were
talking, in came Lonsdale and Lord Brougham.
Brougham walked up and shook hands with
Luttrell and myself, and put out his hand to
Strplii'iison, who made a cold bow, and turned
;i\vay; on which Brougham exclaimed "Oh!"
and talked to us as if nothing had happened.
lie took me aside, and talked of Lord Durham's
retirement from Canada. He said "it was
incredible " ; adding that " if a soldier ran away,
lie would never have another chance of running
;i\vay given him; nor would Durham ever again
!>•' employed." I said nothing, except that I
thought Lord Durham had made a false move.
After dinner Brougham was as gay as usual, and
talked to Stephenson, and took wine with him, as
if nothing had occurred between them. Stephen-
son gave the health of the late Lord Chancellor.
' AVitli all my heart," said Brougham ; " here's
the health of Lord Lyndhurst 1 "

Brougham asked me whether he would be able
to go to his villa at Cannes, and be in time for
the meeting of Parliament. I said I thought he
might ; he then told me he had intended to ask
this question of Palmers ton, " the only member,

168 LONDON CHAP. V.

1838. as it is reported," he said, of the Cabinet with
whom I hold any intercourse, or expect any
kindness."

At our Cabinet on November 26 we discussed
Russell's Education scheme. Lord Melbourne
confessed that he was against the thing altogether;
on which Howick said, " Thank God there are
some things which even you cannot stop, and
that is one of them." Melbourne only smiled.
I thought that our opponents would try to make
a Church question out of it, and say we wanted
to take education out of the hands of the clergy.
Rice said that the clergy had it already, and it
was better to make them managers of a good
system than a bad system.

Palmerston afterwards brought forward the
question of augmenting the Navy. Our Chancellor
of the Exchequer looked black at a proposal
entailing a necessity for more money and new
taxes ; but Lord Melbourne said we must come
to that some day or the other, and we should
not be justified in exposing our shores and our
arsenals to the insults and outrages of a Russian
fleet. Such an attack might appear to be a mad
project ; but it was never safe to suppose men
incapable of mad projects, and even the unopposed
appearance of a Russian fleet in the narrow seas
would degrade England in our own eyes and
in the eyes of all the world. Palmerston pro-
posed to ask Russia, in the first instance, not
to equip more than a certain portion of her fleet

CHAP. V. CRISIS IN JAMAICA 1G9

in the spring; saying, at the same time, that, 1838.
if she exceeded the proposed numher we should
au-ment our navy.

Lord Melbourne then assumed a tone not usual
with him, and said he considered England to have
been under the special protection of Providence
at certain periods of her history, several of which
he mentioned, from the dispersion of the Spanish
Armada to the retirement of the French squadron
in Hantry Hay; hut Melbourne added that " no
man ought to count upon such interposition of
Divine favour, and use no human effort."

Amongst our other difficulties we heard from
Lord Palmerston that the affairs of Belgium wore
a threatening aspect. Just now, also, we were
compelled to attend to affairs at home. Lord
Hill had written a letter to Lord Glenelg on the
unsatisfactory state of the Army.

And as, according to the old saying, " it never
rains hut it pours," Lord Glenelg read to us a
letter which he had received from Sir James
Smith, Governor of Jamaica, representing the
drsperate condition of Government in that island,
with a hostile Assembly and an unfriendly con-
stituent body; add to this, we were told, that
the Attorney-General of the colony was adverse
to the Governor, and that the laws passed seemed
to encourage, if not justify, animosities between
the white and black population. The only
remedy, as we were told, was a suspension of
the Constitution in the island.

VOL. v 22

170 LONDON — TORQUAY CHAP. V.

1838. December 2. — I met our Stanley,1 who told me
that news had just arrived of the rebellion in
Canada having again broken out, and that the
son of our friend Ellice had been seized at his
own house, with his wife, at Beauharnois, and
were under confinement there.

I called on Lord Wellesley, who said that
Brougham had been with him this morning, and
had informed him of the breaking out of the
second rebellion. He strongly disapproved of
Lord Durham's conduct, and contrasted it with
his own, when the Court of Directors disapproved
of his conduct. " My answer,'* said he, " was
the conquest of the Mahrattas. I did not become
sulky and run home."

1839. On December 10 I went to Torquay, and re-
mained there with my children until January 12,
when I returned to London.

FROM DIARY.

Coming to Berkeley Square, I found an in-
vitation to dine at the Palace. There I found
a small party — no guests but Lord Melbourne
and Mr. and Lady Mary Abercromby. I handed
in the latter, a bride, daughter of Lord Minto,
to dinner — a pleasing young woman.

The Queen came up to me in the drawing-

1 Edward John Stanley, M.P. for North Cheshire. Called "our
Stanley " to distinguish him from Edward Stanley, afterwards Earl
of Derby. E. J. Stanley was, in 1848, created Baron Eddisbury,
and in 1850 succeeded his father as second Baron Stanley of
Alderley.

CHAP. V. VAN AMBURGH AND HIS LIONS 171

room, and asked a few civil questions about Erie 1839.
Stoke, and I hoped Her Majesty had not suffered
l.y hem- at the theatre the ni-ht before. She
asked me if I had been there, and seemed sur-
prised that I should know she had heen there.
I asked her how she had liked Brighton, and
she said that she had found herself quite well
since she had come to London.

The Queen kissed the bride at first coming
into the room, and seemed very attentive to her.
The Duchess of Kent looked at the pale bride-
groom and the nut-brown bride with a smile
several time-.

January 17. — I saw John Russell for the first
time since his misfortune. He shook my hand
affectionately. He had little or nothing in his
demeanour denoting what had occurred.

.Inn miry 18.— I dined early with my sister at
Alexander's, and went to Drury Lane to sec Van
Aml>uri;h with his lions; but we stayed too long
at dinner, and got there only just in time to see
the man coming out of the den and the lion
spri ii-in^ after him as he shut the cage. The
1 least seemed very savage, and what I saw of the
stranire si^lit made me wish to go again. I had
to sit out a pantomime and farce and ballet,
which I have not done for years. The dancing
seemed much improved since I saw it last at
Drury Lane, but I could make nothing of the
force.

January 2G.— This day I dined at Lord Breadal-

172 LONDON CHAP. V.

1839. bane's. I met there Prince Czartoryski, whom I
had not seen for some time. But my principal
conversation this evening was with young Van
Buren, son of the President of the United States.
He talked to me very fairly, as I thought, on
our Canadian difficulties, saying it was very
difficult to prevent the incursions of vaga-
bonds across a frontier of two thousand miles;
and that, after all, not more than five hundred,
if so many, had been engaged in the piratical
invasion.

In the drawing-room I had much conversation
with the beautiful hostess, Lady Breadalbane.
She told me that she was with the Queen on
the last Thursday, when H.M. went down behind
the scenes to see Van Amburgh and his lions.
The audience had left the house, and, besides the
Royal suite, there was no one present, except
Mr. Bunn, the manager of the theatre, and Van
Amburgh. H.M. stayed near the cage of the
wild animals whilst they were fed.

The Queen has seen the lions three or four
times, and has commanded another performance
for next Tuesday. This is childish — nothing
more !

FROM BOOK, " RECOLLECTIONS."

January 27. — Lord Durham still continued to
be a source of much annoyance, and persevered
in his threat to charge Stanley and me as having
been his advisers in regard to the employment of

V. LORD DURHAM AND MR. TURTON 173

Mr. Turton.1 Now it was true that we had said 1839.
to him casually, before he had left England, " As
YOU a iv to h;ivr Turton in company, why should
you not ask his opinion ? " But this by no means
amounted to recommending him to give Turton
an oflicial appointment; and I took means to
let Durham know that. Although his story
iuii;ht involve Stanley and me in a disagree-
able controversy, it could not help him in any
way.

But our friend had become a little more plac-
able, and, to account for his ill-humour, had told
more than one of our colleagues that Sir John
Conroy had persuaded him that Lord Melbourne
was anxious to keep him from all intercourse
with the Queen. He could not have had a worse
authority for any conjecture respecting Lord
Melbourne or respecting Her Majesty than Sir

1 Thomas Turton was a school-fellow of Lord Durham's at Eton,
and .- distinguished at the Indian Bar. Mr. Edward

Stanley suggested his appointment to go out with Lord Durham
to Canada, and the suggestion was backed by Sir J. C. Hobhouse.
II therefore went out with the tacit consent (though under no
written engagement) of tlu- M inistry. At the last moment Melbourne
took alarm (apparently at some rumour or information about Turton's
rh;ir:irt»T, which was not of the best), and urged Lord Durham to
thrnw him over; but Lord Durham refused. While Lord Durham
was on tlu- Atlantic, questions were asked in the House about Turton,
;ui<l iirrimonious discussions took place in the House of Lords,
,Sul»t.[urntly Melbourne and Ulcnelg both wrote letters of protest
to Lord Durham about him. On his arrival in Canada, Lord Durham
had appointed Turton one of his private secretaries. Lord Durham
pointed out to Melbourne that he had told him, before starting, that
li- intruded to employ Turton, and Melbourne had not objected.
He could not dismiss him now ; he was receiving no salary, and so
f;ir had been very successful. Turton subsequently helped Lord
Durham by gathering materials for his report.

*

LONDON CHAP. V.

1839. John Conroy. The impudence of this clever man
in those days was almost incredible. He had
written to a friend at St. Petersburg to say that
he should pay that capital a visit in the spring.
The Emperor Nicholas was much incensed at
hearing it, and said, "If he does, I will ban-
him with my own hand ! " Lord Clanricarde,
our Ambassador in Russia, told this in a letter
to Lord Palmerston, who told it to me. Nicholas
had before said of Lord Durham's Canadian Pro-
clamation, "If he had issued that under the
Russian Government, he would have been tried
for his life."

At the S.S.B.S. on Saturday, February 2, I
heard an anecdote of our Queen which did not
the least surprise me. When Her Majesty went
to see Van Amburgh's wild beasts fed, the tiger
made a spring which nearly overturned the cage.
Lord Conyngham (Lord Chamberlain) was much
startled, as well he might be ; but Her Majesty
never moved a muscle, nor showed the slightest
sign of alarm. Mr. Bunn, the manager, was
present, and told this to Mr. Arnold, who men-
tioned it to us.

February 5.— Her Majesty opened the Parlia-
ment. I saw her return from the House. There
was a great crowd in the streets, but very little
cheering, except from the ladies in the balconies.
There were some fellows in the crowd hawking
what they called " Brougham's Letter " ; I did
not inquire what it was. Others exhibited placards,

CHAP. V. LORD GLENELG RESIGNS 175

with " Cheap Bread " on them ; but I did not 1839.
hear any of the rude language which mi alluded
to in some newspapers. Her Majesty looked very
well, and two of my family, who were in the
House of Peers, told me that she read the Speech
distinctly and went through the ceremony with
much grace and dignity.

Russell made a good speech, and he again laid
down the principles of the Cabinet as to further
lie form, lie said that it was very natural that
those who had foretold the insufficiency of the
Keform Bill should not be satisfied with it; but
that, as for himself and the Cabinet, they were
content to follow in the footsteps of Lord Grey
and Lord Althorp. Lord Stanley cheered this;
and the next day he told Lord Tavistock that
nothing could be more satisfactory than his
l)ro ther's speech.

I carried Lord 1'almerston home this evening;
he a-nvd \\itli me that the "opening" had been
unusually spiritless.

Lord Glenelg has resigned the Seals of the
Colonial Cilice. It appears Melbourne wrote to
him, pressing him to take the Privy Seal, and
statin- hi> wish to have Lords Normanby and
Morprth in the Cabinet. "Unfortunately," said
Lord ralmerston, who told me the story, "he
added somethim;- more about energy and activity
hem- wanted at the Colonial Office." This angered
Glenelg, and he resolved to resign.

On February 9, dining with the S.S.B.S., I met

176 LONDON CHAP. V.

1839. young Milnes,1 son of the orator, for the first time,
with whom I became exceedingly intimate in
after-life. He has heen very active in political
life, and has become a Peer.

Walking away from the House on February 11,
I saw Lord Stanley, who called aloud across the
street to me, "Who is to have Glenelg's night-
cap ? " Such was the general impression in
regard to my late colleague ; but he was by no
means a lazy man, he was only too scrupulous
in the choice of his language, and took more
time than was necessary in composing his des-
patches. He was one of the very best speakers
I ever heard in the House of Commons,
and a more estimable man, every way, never
lived.

On February 12 Lord John Russell developed]
his scheme for National Education under the)
superintendence of the President of the Council
and certain other Ministers of the Crown. Our;
friends seemed to approve the plan much, and!
the leaders of the Opposition did not express any
decided dissent. Peel, indeed, confessed that hel
was glad the Church of England was awakened
to the importance of the subject. My friend
Sir Robert Inglis was true to his principles, il
so they might be called, for he reiterated his
old saying that instruction and knowledge were
in themselves — that is, without religion — an un-i
mixed evil. Lord Ashley also expressed himseli

1 Richard Monckton Milnes, created Baron Houghton in 1863.

CHAP. V. RUSSIAN DESIGNS ON INDIA 177

displeased that the State should pay for the 1839.
education of any but Church-of -England men.

On February 23 I dined with the Speaker. It
was a more agreeable party than usual. It was
mentioned, on apparently good authority, that
Count Ludolf declared on his deathbed that,
although he had passed himself off for only eighty -
n, he was, in fact, ninety-three. I recollected
him thirty years before, at Constantinople, and
he was then an aged-looking man. He had dined
with me only the year before, that was in 1838,
and he ate and drank and talked merrily. The
Speaker reminded me that Ludolf had sat next
to him on that occasion, and enjoyed himself

vedingly. After the Speaker's dinner I
went, for a wonder, to an assembly at Lady
Tankerville's. One of the Royal Dukes, who
was there, came up to me and asked me " if
the Persian Ambassador, who was coming to

_rland, was a clever fellow, and if he spoke
French " !

When I came to the Cabinet on Saturday,
lx>rd Palmerston showed me a letter
from the Duke of Wellington saying that he had
heard indirectly from the aide-de-camp to the
Emperor of Russia that he had seen, on the desk
of the Emperor, a proposal bearing on it the
words, " Approved by the Emperor." The proposal
was enclosed in the Duke's letter, and was to this
effect :

"Twenty-seven sail of the line, fifteen frigates,

VOL. v. 23

178 LONDON CHAP. V.

1839. and several transports, with thirty thousand troops
on board, were to sail to the East Indies and
seize upon the capitals of the three Presidencies."

The Duke added that this intelligence was not
to be altogether despised. He did not believe
that the invasion would be attempted, but that
something might be undertaken if the fleet sailed
for the East. It might take the Cape of Good
Hope ; more probably it would go into the
Mediterranean, and thence into the Dardanelles,
in virtue of the treaty of Unkiar Skelessi.

The Duke's note was short, but quite in his
own earnest style, and worth pages of ordinary
correspondence.

No one seemed to think that the Emperor of
Russia really contemplated so rash a design. It
was agreed that Palmerston should write to Lord
Clanricarde, and desire him to employ a little
secret-service money, and find out whether such
a design had really been entertained; also to learn
something about the English aide-de-camp in
Russia, who had communicated the story.

I dined this day at General Sebastiani's with
a large party — more than thirty. Por a wonder
we had a few ladies — Lady Holland, Lady Howick,
and Lady Minto.

I sat next to Lord Holland, and never found
him more agreeable. He told me many things
of Canning, and said Canning's first wish was
to go to China with Lord Macartney. He was
refused, and was very angry. His patrimony

CHAP. V. ANECDOTES OF CANNING AND FOX 179

was about £300 a year, which he soon spent. 1839.
Lord Holland was one of the party at which
Canning had made formal renouncement of his
Whig friends and Whig principles. Afterwards,
when Canning was Secretary of State, he gave
an official passport to Lord Holland, and wrote
a private letter to him, at the same time, begging
him not to give out that he (Lord Holland) spoke
the opinions of the Government. Lord Holland
thought this, from an old friend, much misplaced,
and wrote to Canning to tell him so. They did
not see much of each other afterwards ; hut, when
Canning was going to India, he dined two or
three times at Holland House. Lord Holland
then expressed his surprise that Canning should
leave England; when Canning said that he saw
Reform would be carried, and he did not like to
engage in a hopeless opposition. He added that,
if he ever proposed a measure of Parliamentary
Reform, it would be so as not to leave power to
any party or section of the aristocracy. Mr.
Canning had no fear of the encroachments of
Royalty in our country; his dislike was of the
aristocracy.

Lord Holland told me that what I had heard
of Mr. Fox's early practice of frequently speaking
in the House of Commons was quite true; and
he added that the father, Henry Fox, said he had
never repented of having spoken, but had often
repented of having been silent. Lord Bacon gave
exactly the opposite advice.

180 LONDON CHAP. V.

1839. PROM DlARY.

Lord Holland told me some curious anecdotes
of Lord Egremont, and when I said I had never
seen him, replied, " You have often seen some one
very like him," meaning our master Melbourne.
The day Lord Egremont came of age a great
dinner was given by his guardian. The guests
were in court dresses, and the young man was
so annoyed at the prospect of sitting out the feast
that he slunk under the arm of the servant who
was putting on the top dish, and ran out of the
house.

Lord Holland remarked on the religious turn
of our young men, and said, " There are two of
our colleagues opposite, the most rising young
men of the day. They are both very serious ; I
am afraid to talk before them " — meaning Ho wick
and Morpeth. Lord Holland told me he had
never been to church in London in his life. His
opinions are well known, or I should not put
this down.

PROM BOOK, " RECOLLECTIONS."

March 10. — Some friends dined with me, amongst
whom was Sir Prancis Chantrey. He was par-
ticularly pleasing, and, indeed, instructive. He
was very civil to Waghorn, the half-crazy but
persevering promoter of our Egyptian correspond-
ence, and when Waghorn complained of neglect,
because he had not been made a Lieutenant of
the Royal Navy, Chantrey said, "You are fifty

CHAP. V. LADY KEITH 181

times a greater man as you are! Fifty times 1839.
greater ! Look at me — I am somebody ; but such
as I am, I made myself, and, luckily, never had
a patron."

On March 17 I dined at Lord Holland's. After
dinner Lady Keith1 gave me some sketches of
the French " notables " of the day. I found that
her leanings were for Thiers, in preference to
Guizot — he was more English in his tendencies ;
Count Flahault told me the same.

March 18. — The House of Commons was occupied
with the fifth night's debate on the Corn-laws.
We divided about midnight, and wo had a smaller
number in the minority than I had calculated
upon — being only 195 to 342. This was the first
serious struggle to get rid of the Corn-laws ; and,
although the merit — such as it was — was after-
wards claimed for Mr. Cobden, and claimed by
no less a man than Sir Robert Peel, that merit
belonged to Charles Villiers.

FROM DIARY.

March 23. — As I was passing through Graf ton
Street, I heard a rap at the window of the corner
house but one, and saw young Alfred Montgomery
and his pretty sister, with Brougham, nodding

1 Margaret Mercer Elphinstone, of Banheath, co. Dumbarton,
Baroness Nairne and Keith, born 1788, married 1817, Augustus
Charles Joseph, Cointe de Flahault de la Billardrie, sometime
French Ambassador at the Court of St. James's. She died 1867.
Her eldest daughter married, as his second wife, Henry, fourth
Marquess of Lansdowne.

182 LONDON CHAP. V.

1839, and winking to me to come in. I went to the
door, which was opened to me by Brougham, who
had a velvet cap and gold tassel on his head.
He shook hands and brought me in, laughing
heartily, to show me the Chancellor's purse, which
he said he had been scouring up for the occasion.
He afterwards showed me some pictures and
prints, and pieces of sculpture, and took me up-
stairs to see his drawing-rooms, and my lady's
bed-chamber, and told me he had taken the house
for twenty-one years. He was full of humour
and good-humour, and took me downstairs to the
door to shake hands again. He is surely not an
accountable man. The Speaker told me that,
after all Brougham's bad conduct to John Murray,
our Lord Advocate, he was the first person to
write a letter of condolence to Murray when his
son died.

FROM BOOK, " BECOLLECTIONS."

This day, March 31, Lord Palmerston gave a
diplomatic dinner to receive Marshal Clausel, one
of the best Generals, as I had been given to
understand, who commanded the French in the
Peninsular War. Lord Palmerston introduced
me to him ; he was a large, coarse-featured, but
pleasing-looking man.

I heard some of his talk, which related chiefly
to his Spanish campaigns. He said that Massena
was too old when he marched to resist the English
in Portugal. He was about sixty; but that did

CHAP. V. POLITICAL DISQUIET 183

not prevent him from riding at the door of the
carriage which contained his mistress, a very
young and very pretty woman, of whom he was
very jealous, so said the Marshal.

April 3. — Dining at Holland House with Lord
and Lady Lansdowne, and Rogers, and Luttrell,
I found my lady in great alarm at our prospects
of the 15th of the month ; and I told her I had
no comfort for her. Indeed, the result of the
conflict between the great parties was still very
uncertain, and a portion of our friends, repre-
sented by the Morning Chronicle, were still doing
all in their power to upset us, by calling upon
us to rally all Reformers around us, by declar-
ing for Triennial Parliaments, the Ballot, and
Household Suffrage — a declaration that would have
put us in a minority of 70 or 100 in the House
of Commons, and would not add to our supporters
in the country.

Then would follow the Administration of Sir
Robert Peel, backed by both Houses of Parliament,
and all the great interests and professional bodies;
but hampered by Ireland, and subject to an out-
break in our manufacturing districts. This, to
me, appeared the certain result of our declaring
in favour of a larger measure of Parliamentary
Reform, our own Bill of 1832 having been in
operation not quite seven years.

April 5. — Cabinet on Canada Bill. We agreed
easily on the outline of our measure — a union
of the two provinces, the terms of that union to

184 LONDON CHAP. V.

1839. be settled by Commissioners, but the general
principles to be laid down in our Bill. Lord
Normanby, our new Colonial Secretary, went
through the provisions of the Bill with a speed
and precision which promised well for us, if our
Ministerial lives should be spared.

On April 15 I received Mr. Peacock,1 Chief
Examiner of Correspondence at the India House,
but more known to me as the author of " Headlong
Hall," and other similar works of fiction. He
was in politics a strong Conservative ; but he was
pleased to say of me, when he heard of our
very precarious tenure of office, that he should
consider my retirement from the India Board a
public calamity. As I had not conferred any
favour on Mr. Peacock, and as he was, in no
way, dependent upon me or my official friends,
I considered this token of his approbation to be
highly satisfactory.

April 18. — It was a most agreeable interlude
to me to attend the wedding of Lord Douro and
Lady Elizabeth Hay. The ceremony took place
at St. George's, Hanover Square. The Duke of
Wellington, Lord Cowley, and Lord Maryborough
were present ; and the service was read by Dr.

1 Thomas Love Peacock (1785-1866), author of several novels and
volumes of verse : " Headlong Hall," " Nightmare Abbey," " Paper-
money Lyrics," etc.

My intercourse . with that most accomplished scholar, and most
amiable man, has been one of the principal charms and resources of
my declining years. It was but the other day that he was dying ;
my next news of him was that he was dead, January 23, 1866. (B.)

M.M:. HIONKSS ..|-- I u I;I;DI.\I.I;, ,„ , l.ADY SUSAN MONTAGU.
From a miniature painting by Madame Renand in 1827.

I, IM]

CHAP. V. MARRIAGE OF LORD DOURO 185

Wellesley. The vestry was crowded by the rela- 1839.
tions and connections of the two families. During
the ceremony I stood next to the Duke of
Wellington ; and the Vestry-clerk, recalling to
mind old Westminster days, remarked to me
afterwards, how little probable such an alliance
was in former times. There was a great crowd
in the church and in the streets. The Duke
was much cheered ; so was the bride. I signed
the marriage-register. Afterwards I took my
daughter to the marriage breakfast given by Lord
Tweeddale, in Belgrave Square, where some
hundred and fifty relations and connections and
friends were assembled, and paid their homage
to the Duke. He was led in a sort of triumph
round the room by the fair mother, the
Marchioness, still lovely. The bride was in-
disposed, and could not appear; but at the
marriage she was a most lovely creature, just
eighteen. I carried her on my back at Florence,
in 1828.

It was on occasion of this wedding-breakfast
that, for the first time, and, as I then thought,
probably for the last time, I shook hands with the
Duke of Wellington.

FROM DIARY.

April 24. — In the evening of this day I went to
an assembly at Lansdowne House. The Queen
dined there ; and those Ministers, who, like myself,
did not dine there, met Her Majesty in the tea-

VOL. v 24

186 LONDON CHAP. V.

1839. room previously to her going into the music-room.
H.M. came up to me, and signified her wish to
have some Arab horses procured for her at
Bombay. I promised to do this. As P. Thompson
and myself had come in at one door, and some of
our colleagues at another, the Queen, good-
humouredly, alluded to the circumstance, on which
I ventured to beg Her Majesty not to apprehend
therefrom any serious division amongst her
servants, as we had agreed to make that "an
open question." H.M. condescended to laugh
heartily at this small attempt at pleasantry.

Lord Lansdowne took the Queen into the music-
room, and the concert began. Grisi, Persiani,
Rubini, and Lablache were the principal
performers.

I saw Lord Durham for the first time since his
return, and resolved he should not pass without
a recognition, so I asked him how he was, and
held out my hand, which he took rather formally,
and we parted. He has no reason to complain of
me, but I have great reason to complain of him.
Were the reverse the case I would not have
spoken to him first.

Peel was very smiling and gracious, and has
been so of late ; but he is an awkward, shy fellow,
almost as much so as myself. I never saw so many
beautiful women in one room in my life ; but what
is that to me ? Except that it pleases and
harmonises and affords an agreeable contrast to
the sights and sounds of public life.

CHAP. V. ELLICE CRITICISING THE CABINET 187

FROM BOOK, " RECOLLECTIONS." 1839-

This day, April 27, I met my friend Ellice at
dinner; Lord and Lady Sudeley, and Lady Marcus
Hill, were of the party ; and Ellice, for some
n-ason or other, fell foul of the Cabinet, and of
their management of the party, and particularly
of the Press. He then told us how he had carried
all before him in Lord Grey's time. Not wishing
to quarrel, I did not remind him that what he
called his management had ended in the breaking-
up of the Cabinet in the first instance, and after-
wards in the breaking-up of our majority of two
hundred. I did venture to say that, after all, we
had lasted longer than Lord Grey's Cabinet,
whereat he grew furious, and said that was " no
merit of our own." Afterwards, he was a little
pacified, and said that we were the best men that
could be procured at the time ; also, that we were
good Heads of Departments, and, adding civilly,
that Lord Palmerston and myself had managed
Eastern affairs admirably.

Walking down to the India Board on May 3,
I saw the Queen with her ladies, in three open
carriages, without guards, going to the Exhibition
in Trafalgar Square. No notice was taken of Her
Majesty ; there was no cheering, there was not
even a crowd. The drawing-room, the day before,
had hern very thinly attended, and was over in
thirty-six minutes. This was said at the time to
be one of the schemes adopted by our political
opponents for disgusting the Queen with her

188 LONDON CHAP. V.

1839. Ministers. Such was the rumour of the day ; but
whether it had any real foundation I had no
means of knowing.

In these days of fierce party struggles and close
divisions nothing was thought of but parlia-
mentary numbers; and well do I recollect that,
when Poulett Thompson's brother was drowned in
the Thames, near Marlow, the only reflection
which that catastrophe called for from our
Secretary of the Treasury was, " And so we shall
lose two votes. " No one who has not been
engaged in the fight knows how much of human
happiness may depend upon a single life ; and this
is true almost as much of the battles of Parliament
as of the casualties of war.

At a Cabinet on May 7 Lord Melbourne opened
our proceedings. His opinion was that the small-
ness of our majorities, and the evident intention
of the Radicals to desert us, made it necessary
that we should resign. Russell stated the same
opinion very strongly. After some talk we all
said RESIGN.

"We now discussed in what terms the announce-
of our resignation should be made. I said, " Say
as little as you can of the past, and nothing of the
future. " This raised a laugh ; and Russell said,
" Hobhouse is always for silence." Lord Mel-
bourne, however, agreed with me, and so it was
resolved. The Cabinet separated, apparently for
the last time, and we left the old room, as we then
thought, never to return to it.

CHAP. V. THE CZAREVITCH 189

As I was leaving the House of Commons after 1839.
Russell's announcement of our resignation, I said
to Colonel Sibthorp, " You ought to be pleased."
"Yes," said the Colonel, "if I was quite sure it
was over with you ; but we have scotched the
snake, not killed it."

I walked away with Lord Palmerston, who
agreed with me our resignation was brought about
less by external than by internal causes — jealousies,
discontents, weariness in one leader, laziness in
another. I asked him if he intended to give his
announced dinner to the Grand-duke (the Czare-
vitch). "To be sure," he answered. "What!
lose my place, and my dinner too ? "

I dined the next day, accordingly, at the Foreign
Office. The banquet was exceedingly well got up.
The guests were about fifty in number ; several
pretty women were amongst them. Palmerston
contrived that the Czarevitch should hand the
lovely Lady Seymour to dinner, and sit beside her.
I thought that, at first, H.I.H. was shy and
subdued; but his fair neighbour plied him with
smiles, and a few glasses of champagne relaxed his
round, chubby, Calmuck cheeks. His little eyes
began to twinkle, and at last he was completely
subdued. The Czarevitch was not a handsome
man, nor had a good expression ; but he could not
be called plain. He had a good figure, above the
middle height, and his manners seemed gracious.
I heard that he expressed himself much gratified
by Her Majesty's reception of him. Mr. de

190 LONDON CHAP. V.

1839. Tolstoi, his Chamberlain, mentioned this to Lord
Albemarle, from whom I heard it. I could not
help looking at him with much interest as the
future master of so many millions of men and of
so large a portion of the habitable globe.

Pozzo di Borgo was present, and gave me a very
ceremonious shake of the hand, showing he was
not unacquainted with the fate of the Government.
Lord Durham was also there, and we exchanged a
few words. I noted nothing else of this banquet,
except that we were visited by a violent thunder-
storm that shook the old building, and which, as
some one remarked, boded no good to the new
Ministry.

The next day, March 9, I saw Lord Melbourne,
who said, " There's a hitch " ; and he explained
this by adding that Peel had insisted upon having
the nomination of the Ladies of the Household.
Her Majesty refused this ; and then Sir Robert,
and the Duke of Wellington, had urged this con-
cession, but the Queen still refused ; and Peel and
the Duke withdrew, Peel undertaking to give a
final answer in the evening ; "And so," said Lord
Melbourne, " you need not take any steps about
India yet ; for if Peel will not go on, we shall be
sent for.

I dined at Lord Wilton's in Grosvenor Square.
After dinner a note was brought in for Lord
Liverpool, and shortly afterwards another note
was brought in to Lord Sydney. There was a
good deal of tittering amongst the ladies at the

CHAP. V. THE BEDCHAMBER QUESTION 191

table; but more commotion was excited when a 1839.
note was brought to me, with " Melbourne," and
" Immediate," on the cover of it. Lady Wilton
exclaimed " Bless me ! " and made some remarks
about the oddity of three messengers arriving
whilst the family were at dinner. Lady Wilton
added, " I know to whom the real note is
addressed." I looked at my note, and found it to
be a Cabinet summons to meet at ten o'clock the
same evening in South Street.

When I arrived at South Street Lord Melbourne
told us all that had passed between the Queen,
Sir Robert Peel, and the Duke of Wellington.
H.M. had insisted that no interference should be
permitted with her female household. Sir Eobert
Peel consented that Lord Liverpool should hold a
high office in the household, and he promised to
name no lady who might not be acceptable to Her
Majesty. He only urged the removal of certain
political ladies, as a proof of Her Majesty's confi-
dence, which, he said, was indispensable to enable
him to carry on the business of Government in a
Parliament where he had not a majority, and
which he did not intend, in the first instance, to
dissolve.

The Queen still insisted on the uncontrolled
appointment of her ladies, and the negotiation was
broki'ii off by Sir Robert Peel saying that he
would consult his friends before he gave a final
answer. His friends were unanimously of opinion
that he could not undertake the Government upon

192 LONDON CHAP. V.

1839. the terms proposed by Her Majesty ; accordingly,
he resigned the commission. The Queen told Sir
Robert she would do nothing hastily in a matter
of so much importance, and would reconsider the
proposal, and give Sir Robert a final answer by
twelve o'clock the next day. It was under these
circumstances that the Queen had called for the
opinion of Lord Melbourne and his late colleagues.
Lord John Russell spoke most strongly in
favour of standing by the Queen, and decried
Peel for his unmanly conduct. Our late Lord
Chancellor observed that a good deal depended
on the exact terms of the proposal; others then
began to hesitate. On this, Melbourne brought
two letters addressed to him by the Queen, and
read them to us. They gave an account of her
interview with Peel and the Duke of Wellington ;
H.M. said that when she resisted in respect to
her ladies Peel was taken aback at once. She
had never seen a man so perturbed. She added,
if she consented to it, she might be deprived of
her friends one by one, even to her dressers, and
be surrounded by spies. She remarked that she
flattered herself Lord Melbourne would be pleased
with the manner in which she had conducted
her controversy with Peel and the Duke; and
then Lord Melbourne gave his opinion that Her
Majesty had shown as much knowledge of the
subject under discussion as either Peel or the
Duke.

The reading of these letters gave a new spirit

CHAP. V. PEEL RESIGNS 193

to our waverers; and even Howick and Rice 1839.
owned that it was impossible to abandon such a
Queen, and such a woman, and that all we had
to do was to put the question in such a position
as to make it most becoming to the character
and position of Her Majesty.

Lord Lansdowne drew up a letter stating that
H.M. had duly considered Sir Robert Peel's pro-
posal, which she believed was contrary to usage,
and which was most repugnant to her feelings. It
was settled that Lord Melbourne should read this
to the Queen, and recommend the adoption of it
by Her Majesty.

Russell told me that when he first mentioned
to the Queen our intention of resigning she cried
bitterly, and would not come downstairs in the
evening afterwards.

On May 10 it was officially announced that
Peel had resigned. The streets were crowded,
and every one seemed in an anxious bustle. I
met several Conservative acquaintances, who
seemed stupefied; amongst them Burdett, who
asked me if the story was true, and, hearing my
answer, began to abuse Peel for falling into the
same stupid blunder as the Whigs in 1812, in
quarrelling about the court ladies. My old friend,
however, was wrong there ; the ladies had nothing
to do with the rupture in 1812. A little later
in the day I heard Lord Melbourne had positively
returned to office.

I went in the evening to the State Ball given

VOL. v 25

194 LONDON CHAP. V.

1839 by the Queen to the Czarevitch, and saw him
dance in a quadrille with Her Majesty. The
young lady looked in high spirits, and was most
cordial and attentive to such of us as came
near her. Sir Robert Peel was very civil to
me, and Sir James Graham shook hands. Lord
Stanley was more cross and rude than usual
with him; he told me he did not believe we
knew what had really taken place between the
Queen and Sir Robert Peel, thus implying that
Her Majesty had misrepresented the conver-
sations. He said that the House of Commons,
on Monday, would not put up with the silence
that had satisfied the Lords, and he threatened
a warm debate.

Prom the angry, disappointed politician, I took
refuge with a beautiful creature whose husband
was to have been in the upper ranks of the
household if the change had taken place. She
was not at all less amiable than usual.

"We had another Cabinet meeting on May 11,
when we discussed again the difference between
the Queen and Sir Robert Peel. The Queen told
the Duke of Wellington that it was paying her
a very ill compliment to suppose that her ladies
gave her advice on political matters. They did no
such thing; they were her domestic companions,
nothing more.

Lord Melbourne confirmed this, and said that
the Queen looked with the greatest alarm at the
prospect of being reduced to the state of thraldom,

CHAP. V. THE QUEEN AND PEEL 195

in which she had lived before her accession to 1839.
the throne, when she was watched and kept aloof
from all her private friends.

Lord Howick still proposed to give Peel another
trial, and afford him a chance of reopening the
negotiation with H.M. . . . Lord John Russell said
no earthly power should induce him to hand over
the Queen to Peel ; the Queen had said to him,
" I have stood by you, do you stand by me ! "
and would he desert such a woman ? I expressed
myself very strongly in the same sense, and said
that I would sooner cut my hand off than sign
such a negotiation. Lord John told us that we
might do as we liked; but that, if we gave the
advice to return to Sir Robert Peel, the Queen
would not send for him, nor for the Duke of
Wellington, but to some one else. Lord Mel-
bourne said that the Queen had said the same
to him.

Lord John Russell then drew up a minute ex-
pressive of our opinion on the question of inter-
ference with the ladies of the Queen's household,
and declaring in the Queen's favour.

In the evening of this day I dined with Lord
Sudeley. Amongst the guests was a very pretty
woman — Lady Marcus Hill,1 with whom I became
somewhat intimate, and who honoured me with a
visit more than once at Erie Stoke. She was

1 Lord Arthur Marcus Hill, son of the second Marquess of Down-
shire, succeeded his mother in the Sandys peerage. Married, in
1837, Louisa, daughter of Joseph Blake, Esq.

196 LONDON CHAP. V.

1839. the sister of a gentleman possessed of estates in
America, and whose family was descended from
one of the great men to whom we are indebted
for the renown and prosperity of this wonderful
community.

At this dinner I heard an anecdote connected
with a very remarkable man and his son, a still
more famous person. "W. J. Denison, M.P. for
Surrey, told us that he had heard from Lord
Abinger that, being one night at the playhouse,
he met the father of the late Sir Robert Peel,
who said to him : " There is my eldest son ; he
is just come from Harrow. What shall I do
with him ? Shall I send him to Milk Street to
conduct my business ? Or shall I do as some
people advise me to do — send him to Oxford and
make a fine gentleman of him ? " Scarlett ad-
vised Sir Robert to send his son to Oxford. We
know the result.

On May 13 I went to the House of Commons
at five o'clock. A crowd was assembled at the
doors and in the lobbies, and soon after I had
come in I heard much shouting, which was con-
tinued in the body of the House as Lord John
Russell walked up to his place — his old place-
as Leader of the House. The House was ex-
ceedingly full. Some petitions were presented.
Peel then came in, and took his usual seat.
Russell several times looked at the clock, and a
little after five rose and said a few words, which
Peel interrupted by suggesting that, as the after-

CHAP. v. PEEL'S STATEMENT 197

noon was dark, it would be better to wait until 1839.
the candles were lighted, on which Russell sat
down. The lighting of the candles occupied a
long time.

The Grand-duke of Russia and his suite were
under the gallery, and every part of the House
was quite full; every one seemed vexed at
the delay and at the boggling of the candle-
lighters. The two principal performers, Peel
and Russell, had an appearance of much
anxiety, particularly Peel, who looked red and
white alternately. The candles being lighted,
Russell again rose, and stated that Peel had
Her Majesty's permission to explain all the cir-
cumstances connected with the late negotiations,
and that, after Peel had done this, he should
make whatever remarks he might judge to be
requisite.

Then Peel rose and made his statement, which
was accurately reported in the newspapers. But
any one acquainted with the facts, or even com-
paring one part of his statement with the other,
might have exposed him much more than Russell
did, or perhaps wished to do. Nothing could be
more tricky than his professed unwillingness to
bring forward his own impressions against an
absent party, and at the same time reading his
own letter to the Queen, which conveyed his own
impressions, and to which no answer was, or could
be, given by the Queen ; but Lord John Russell
did not take advantage of this apparent contra-

198 LONDON CHAP. V.

1839, diction, nor of the weak parts of Peel's statement.
He was more nervous than I ever recollected
him to have heen, and faltered and hesitated and
repeated himself.

The next day I dined with Lady Mildmay. I
met Sydney Smith, who, for some reason or the
other, was very much out of sorts ; he conde-
scended, however, to be civil to me, and patted
me on the hack when I called the late Tory
attempt at government the " Three Inglorious
Days." This same evening Lord Melbourne
made a short speech in the Lords, and merely
said that he retained office to stand by the Queen ;
he made no promise of change of men or of
measures. The Duke of Wellington did not ac-
quit himself well ; but, as usual with him, he
told the truth. He confessed that Peel and he
had insisted upon the complete disposal of the
household, women as well as men ; and he justi-
fied it. This quite made good the Queen's
case.

May 27. — I dined this evening at the Trinity
House. The Duke of Wellington, as Master,
received the guests very civilly. I had a few
words with him; also with Peel, who looked
most unhappy in his uniform, which did not fit
him, and which he seemed not to know whether
to keep buttoned or unbuttoned.

The Duke of Wellington went through the
business of the evening quietly and well, al-
though with a feeble tone and manner. He

CHAP. V. AT THE TRINITY HOUSE 199

gave the toasts generally with a short preface. 1839.
The company was evidently of a Tory com-
plexion, and the name of the Queen-Dowager
was hotter received than that of the Queen.
The Duke gave the health of the Queen's
Ministers in a short and appropriate speech,
and it was not ill received. All this time I
could not help remarking how sulky Sir Robert
Peel looked; he seemed not to be attending to
the business of the day, but turned his head
frequently, as if looking at an empty bookcase
behind him.

The Duke's health was most enthusiastically
received, and " See the Conquering Hero comes ! "
sounded something more than a mere after-dinner
compliment. Whilst this tune was being played,
and we were all shouting, I could not help con-
templating " the hero of a hundred fights " as if
for the last time. I remarked that, in the many
allusions made to him, nothing offensively flatter-
ing was said ; only once was he called a great
man.

On June 5 I went to the Levee, which was
much crowded. From sixty to seventy addresses
were presented to the Queen, thanking Her
Majesty for her recent resistance to the demands
of Sir Robert Peel ; about sixteen addresses of a
contrary character were presented to Her Majesty.
Lord Melbourne seemed to me much out of sorts,
and, indeed, Duncannon told me that he was
greatly distressed.

200 LONDON CHAP. V.

1839. June 6. — I dined this day with the Hollands,
and went in the evening to the Countess Grey's
assembly, which I had not done for some time,
as the good man disliked the Melbourne Ad-
ministration. He was very civil, and so was my
lady; but poor Lady Durham was not in her
usual kind mood, resenting, I presumed, what
she thought the ill-treatment of her husband by
a formal bow.

CHAPTER VI

FROM BOOK, " RECOLLECTIONS." 1839.

On June 9 I again dined at Holland House.
Macaulay told us that the London watchmen
cried, " Past one o'clock, and Quebec taken."
The British public then were in great want of
a victory, and the watchman's cry was occasion-
ally mingled with news handed to him by some
wag. I heard that the cry at the West End,
which once frightened the old ladies was, " Past
one o'clock, and a dreadful earthquake 1 " This
was just after the earthquake at Lisbon.

Lord and Lady Normanby, and Ellice, and
Baron Moncorvo, came in the evening to Holland
House ; and Ellice drove several of the company
away by complaining vehemently that the
Cabinet never took his advice about Canada,
although he knew more about Canada than all
the Cabinet put together.

On June 12 I dined at Sir John Guest's, where
there was a large party to meet the Duke of
Sussex. The good man was formal with me, and
would scarcely speak to P. Thompson ; but he
was civil enough to Lord Lansdowne, as if the
rejection of his claim was the work only of the
members of the Cabinet who belonged to the House

VOL. v 201 20

202 LONDON CHAP. VI.

1839. of Commons. We had music in the evening, and
Grisi sang.

June 14 — This evening Stanley made a most
furious speech against our Education scheme, and
Lord Ashley poured forth fanatical denunciations
such as I had not yet heard in Parliament. I
heard he was certainly sincere, and concluded he
must be mad. But I was not then aware of the
effects produced by religious enthusiasm upon very
good, and, in all other respects, very sensible men.

On June 20 I dined at the Duke of Welling-
ton's, and, going there early, found him alone.
We walked about the room together, talking on
Indian matters, and, more particularly, on the
claim put forward by the agents of Lady Hastings
for a share of the Deccan booty. He characterised
this as infamous, and told me that he had written
a second memorandum on the subject, which he
thought would settle the question. He told me
that his definition of booty was, "WHAT YOU

COULD LAY YOUR BLOODY HAND UPON AND KEEP " ;

and he suited the action to the word, by putting
his outstretched hand on the table, repeating his
saying more than once in his peculiar fashion.

The company began to arrive, and the Duke
introduced me to some of them. The Tweeddales
were there, and the James Hays ; the Duke and
Duchess of Richmond, the Duchess of Beaufort,
Lord and Lady Wilton, General Pakenham l ; in

1 Sir Hercules Pakenham, 1781-1850, served with distinction in
the Peninsular War.

CHAP. VI. HUSKISSON'S INDECISION 203

all, about thirty-six. Lord Douro was there, but 1839.
the bride not. He seemed a good-natured, lively,
rather rough-mannered man ; and his conversa-
tion, considering that I never spoke to him but
once before, was more free than some would like ;
but I augured well of him. He told me that his
wife had £50,000 worth of jewels on her at the
Queen's Court this day ; and that, as soon as she
took them off, he put them in a chest, and carried
tlirm off to a place of safety.

A\V dined in the room in which the portraits of
the Allied Sovereigns were hung up. The plate
on the table was a present from the Portuguese
Government, and the inscriptions upon it recorded
some feat of the great soldier — at least, so I was
told. Everything was historical in this " House
of Fame." The Duke seemed in good health and
spirits; he rose from the table about ten o'clock
and went into the drawing-room, where I had
not an opportunity of talking to him, except
when I took my leave of him. He was then
exceedingly courteous, and thanked me for coming
to him.

On June 23 I dined with Lord Palmerston.
Talking of Huskisson, he said he was the most
undecided man he had ever known. During the
East Retford debate, he continued talking to
Palmerston in this fashion : " What shall I do ?
I wish I know what to do ; shall I vote for or
against ? " Some one had made a speech in favour
of the disfranchisement which appeared con-

204 LONDON CHAP. VI.

1839. elusive, and Palmerston told Huskisson he should
vote for it ; hut Huskisson still hesitated. " The
AYES to the right, the NOES to the left." Hus-
kisson still said, " What shall I do ? " " Stay
where you are," said Lord Palmerston, and,
accordingly he did stay ; hut Palmerston told me
that, if Huskisson had had to move, instead of
sitting still, he would have voted the other way.
I remarked that Huskisson lost his life by
indecision.

Another remarkable man of that day was
equally undecided. Lord Palmerston told me
that, after he and Huskisson had resigned, he
walked down Parliament Street with Lord
Dudley. Palmerston endeavoured to persuade
him to resign. Lord Dudley at last said, " I
should like to ask that man what I ought to do,
and be decided by him." He pointed to a porter
who was coming out of Downing Street. He did
not decide until he had waited two days more,
and then he resigned. This day Palmerston told
me what I had often heard stoutly denied, that
Perceval did offer the Chancellorship of the
Exchequer to the clever gentleman known at
that time by the name of " Orator Milnes," and,
on his refusal, offered the place to him (Palmer-
ston); but he also refused it, and took the place
of Secretary-at-War. Lord Palmerston added
that this offer was so much anticipated at the
time that, when Milnes was walking down
the House after the division, Jack Fuller, the

CHAP. VI. THOMAS DRUMMOND 205

buffoon of those days, walked before him roar- 1839.
ing out, " Make way for the Chancellor of the
Exchequer."

FROM DIARY.

June 26. — At the Levee to-day many addresses
were presented to H.M., some of rather a Con-
servative complexion, which the Queen did not
receive very graciously, and I remarked particu-
larly her stately look and pouting under-lip when
the Duke of Rutland, Lord Winchilsea, and
Sir Francis Burdett brought up their addresses.
To our friends she was all smiles and civilities.
This difference was not observable until after
recent events, and is natural considering the gross
and vulgar personal abuse of H.M. in the Tory
papers.

Dining at Lord Hatherton's on this day, June 26,
I met a gentleman who had given much help
to our Chancellor of the Exchequer in preparing
the Reform Bill. This was Lieutenant Drummond.1
He seemed to me a very clever and a very agree-
able man. He was now Irish Under-Secretary,
and had come over to England to give evidence
before the Lords' Committee on Irish outrages.
He told me their Lordships could not make out
their case against Lord Normanby, although
Brougham had tried to bully the witnesses;

1 Thomas Drummond, born 1797, entered RE. 1815, was head of
the Boundary Commission in connection with the Reform Bill in
1832, and Under-Secretary at Dublin Castle from 1835 till his death
in 1840.

206 LONDON CHAP. VI.

1839. amongst them was Sir William Somerville,1 who
turned upon him, 'and forced him to apologise
for his rudeness.

FROM BOOK, " RECOLLECTIONS."

On June 27 I dined at the Palace. The party
was very small, as Lord Melbourne was detained
in the Lords, and Spring Rice, who had been
invited, was obliged to be present in the
Commons. The Duke of Argyll had the gout.
Her Majesty was handed to dinner by Lord
Byron, and sat between him and another Lord-
in-waiting. Charles Howard and myself were
the only guests. The Duchess of Kent was not
present ; she was unwell, and was said to be
taking care of Lady Flora Hastings.

The Queen behaved with her usual pleasing
civility, and, after dinner, two young children,
sons of the Princess Leiningen, who was at table,
came into the room and romped and played
about, and kissed the Queen's hands, and she
kissed them, and laughed heartily at their little
sports, and encouraged them. When we came
into the drawing-room I had a long conversation
with her. She was more than usually kind and
condescending, asking after my children, and
praising their cousin, Lady Douro's, beauty.

I doubt whether any one that sat on the throne

1 Sir William M. Somerville was M.P. for Drogheda 1837-52,
and Chief Secretary for Ireland 1847-52 ; was raised to the Peerage
in 1863 as Baron Athlumny and Meredyth.

CHAP. VI. CHARACTER OF QUEEN VICTORIA 207

had a more intuitive and cautious sense, not only i»39.
of the duties, but the decencies of Sovereignty,
than the Lady to whom Providence has entrusted
the Government of this vast Empire. Nor had
she, in the beginning of her reign, by any means
an easy task. She was, on the evening in question,
not in good spirits ; Lord Melbourne's arm-chair
was unoccupied, and she spoke very little during
the evening. Miss Davies, one of the women of the
bedchamber, told me that she was much annoyed
at what had passed, and AMIS passing, at the
Palace ; but bore up, with royal courage, against
all the calumnies to which the Hastings affair
had given rise.

An article in the Quarterly Review,1 said to
be written by Croker, charged H.M. with having
said what was not true in regard to her negotia-
tions with Sir Robert Peel, and with systematic
deceit in her dealings with Sir Robert; whereas
Lord Melbourne told me H.M.'s real fault was
dealing too openly with that clever personage, by
which she irritated him more than was necessary.
For example, she said : " You tell me you have
great difficulty in carrying on the Government.
Why, then, add to your difficulties by the strong
measure proposed in dismissing my ladies ? "

1 The article in the Quarterly Review for June 1839, on "The
Household and the Ministry," was written by J. W. Croker. It
a minute account of the negotiations in what is known a/s the
" Bedchamber Question," but contains no word of attack upon, or
insinuation against, Queen Victoria. The negotiations are said "to
exhibit most unequivocal marks of puzzle and intrigue" on the part
of H.M.'s advisers.

208 LONDON CHAP. VI.

1839. At our next Cabinet we resolved that the mis-
representation in regard to the conduct of the
Queen, in her late negotiations with Sir Robert
Peel, should be answered in the Edinburgh
Review with the notice that the answer came
from authority.

This same day I went to the Opera, to hear
Grisi and see Taglioni.

I saw Lord Tweeddale at the India Board on
July 2, and asked him if he would like to go as
Commander-in- Chief to India. He answered that
he would go anywhere that the Queen commanded
him to go. We settled that he should see the
Duke of "Wellington and request him to see me
on the subject.

I dined afterwards at Lord Zetland's, where I
met the Duke of Sussex, the Duke of Norfolk,
the Duke of Somerset, Lord Albemarle, and one
or two others. I afterwards went to the Opera
to see Taglioni dance.

The next day I called on the Duke of Wellington.
He put me into a chair opposite to himself, and,
leaning close to me, with his hand to his ear,
listened to what I had to say quietly and
seriously. I asked him whether he thought the
rule of service might be dispensed with in choosing
a Commander-in-Chief for India. He answered
that he thought it of great importance to observe
the order of rank on all occasions where it was
practicable ; but that rules were made to do good,
not to do harm, and, if necessity required, they

CHAP. VI. THE COMMAND-IN-CHIEF IN INDIA 209

ought to be put aside. He said that, when he 1839.
was first chosen to command in Portugal, he was
a young Lieutenant-General, and King George III.
sent for him, and told him he did not like to
take officers out of their rank, but, as his Ministers
required it, he should do it."

The Duke then got up, and brought the Army
List, and ran down the names with his finger,
until he came to Sir John Keane. The Duke then
said, " They are all worn out above him ; now let
us look below " ; and he stopped at the name of
Lyons, and asked if that General would do. I
said, I had inquired about him, and was told he
would not do. The Duke replied, " Perhaps not " ;
and I then said that I wished to send a younger
man than is now usually employed in great com-
mands. The Duke said I was right, and added
that what was wanted was comparative youth, and
health, and character, both civil and military, for
command in India. His Grace continued, " I
speak frankly. I think the present business in
Afghanistan, as to fighting, is settled, or nearly
so; I think Sir John Keane 1 will do what he has to
do there well ; so I think of Cotton, whom I know
Avt'll, and from whom I have seen a very good
letter addressed to Lord Ellenborough ; but I
cannot say I think Keane fit for Commander-in-
Chief permanently, and when matters come to be

1 In 1839, Shah Soojah, the expelled ruler of Afghanistan, was
restored to power by an English force under Sir John (afterwards
Lord) Keane.

VOL. v 27

210 LONDON CHAP. VI.

1839. arranged permanently, after the present advance
has been concluded, I do not think he is the
man for that. There must he great respecta-
bility for a Commander-in- Chief ; he has a great
deal of administration to conduct, and should
have a high character. I do not think Keane
will do."

I remarked to the Duke that perhaps Sir John
Colborne might have been sent; but that there
were objections. The Duke said, " You cannot
spare him from Canada ; he is an excellent soldier,
but you cannot spare him." I expressed my
doubts as to his administrative capacity, at which
the Duke seemed surprised. I then mentioned
the names of Sir Henry Hardinge, Lord Fitzroy
Somerset, and Lord Tweeddale. The Duke took
up the Army List again, and said that Hardinge
was a very distinguished officer, and a Lieutenant-
General perfectly competent to conduct a
campaign. As for Lord Eitzroy, he thought very
highly of him also ; but he must say he did not
think Lord Hill would part with him. In respect
to Lord Tweeddale, he was at the bottom of the
page, next to Lord Eitzroy. He was a young
Major-General ; but he had seen a great deal of
service, both on the Staff in Spain, and after-
wards in America, where he was badly wounded.
He had a high character in every respect, and, no
doubt, would answer the purposes required.

I put the question again to the Duke, " Did he
think Lord Tweeddale would make a good Com-

CHAP. VI. REFERRED TO LORD HILL 211

mander-in-Chief ? " The Duke replied, "Most 1839.
assuredly."

I then asked him whether he would permit me
to mention his opinion to Lord Hill. The Duke
said that he would; that Lord Hill was in the
habit of consulting him on military matters, and
that he always gave him his views, without
reserve ; that he never interfered, but spoke only
when spoken to. The Duke then added, " I have
no objection to your telling Lord Hill what I have
said ; hut management is everything in these
matters, and I know people are jealous of their
power, so I would recommend you to go over the
whole matter with Lord Hill, without mentioning
my name, and, if you obtain your object, so much
the better ; if not you can then refer to me, and
I will say to him what I have said to you. The
Duke repeated this to me more than once, and,
after some more conversation on the duties of
Commander-in-Chief, at this period in India, I
rose, and, thanking him for his advice, took my
loave. He was reserved, though civil, in his
manner, and treated the visit as an official
communication.

I went to Lord Melbourne and told him what
had passed between us. He seemed pleased ; he
recommended me to go to Lord Hill directly.

I did so, and told Lord Hill that we must
choose a Commander-in-Chief for India, and
stated my views as to the necessity of breaking
through the rule of seniority, and if that was to

212 LONDON CHAP. VI.

1839, be done we might as well take a young Major-
General as an old one. To this Lord Hill
assented ; but he named General Adam, to whom
I objected at once, as having tried to bargain
for a residence in the Upper Provinces, on account
of his health. Lord Hill then said something
about Lord Combermere ; but added that he would
not go. I remarked he should not go if he
would. I then mentioned Sir Henry Hardinge,
Lord Fitzroy Somerset, and Lord Tweeddale. I
added that, if politics prevented Hardinge from
going, and Eitzroy could not be spared at the
Horse- Guards, I thought Tweeddale might go.
I mentioned what I heard of him ; without, how-
ever, saying anything of the Duke of Wellington's
opinion of him, nor mentioning that I had con-
sulted him on the subject. To my surprise, Lord
Hill did not object, confessed Tweeddale's fitness
and services, and ended by saying he would con-
sider the proposal with reference to the three
officers, and to Tweeddale in particular.

I wrote a few lines to the Duke of Wellington,
stating that, as I had found Lord Hill so tractable,
I had not mentioned his Grace's name, nor brought
the weight of his authority to bear on the
Commander-in-Chief.

On the evening of July 5 our Chancellor of
the Exchequer brought forward his Budget, and
announced his Penny Postage scheme, which Sir
Robert Peel announced he should oppose.

The next day the Eactory Bill was in Committee.

CHAP. VI. BIRMINGHAM RIOTS 213

Our friend Slaney, as usual, proposed a middle
course on some question; on which Lord Stanley
wrote a note to me, and told me that Canning
had said of Wilberforce that, if one man said
the shortest way to Kensington was through the
Park, and another man declared for the road,
Wilberforce would say that the shortest way
was along the top of the wall.

I went to a Cabinet, where Lord John
Russell told us what had happened in the riots
at Birmingham, and threw out that we might
have to propose a Seizure of Arms Bill; but
Lord Holland was against this measure, so was
Lord Howick, so also was I. Lord Melbourne
took the same view, and then Russell gave way,
saying, at the same time, if disturbances took
place during the long holidays he should propose
to call Parliament together and resign the seals.

Amongst the other unpleasant occurrences of
this day, I must record that Lord Hill called on
me and told me that he had seen the Duke of
Wellington, and was acquainted with my visit
to him. He added that it had been agreed be-
tween him and the Duke that he should write
to his Grace, and send him a table of precedents,
as he called it, on the appointment of Commander-
in-Chief in India, and that the Duke should then
give a formal opinion upon the question. At this
I was not a little surprised, and I said that the
great interests of our Empire were not to be
regulated by precedents. Lord Hill then said

214 LONDON CHAP. VI.

1839. that he should prefer leaving Sir John Keane
in command until the end of the campaign, and
then supersede him, and make Sir Jasper Nicolls
Commander-in-Chief. I replied that I would not
consent to that arrangement; I would wait for
the Duke of Wellington's opinion ; but I protested
against the rule of seniority, and I would not he
a party to observing it at great risk to our best
interests in India.

Lord Tweeddale called on me the next day.
He told me that he had seen the Duke of
Wellington, who had received the announced
memorandum from the Horse- Guards, and was
about to write his comments upon it. But it
was clear to me, by what I now heard, that his
Grace had changed his mind, and was not prepared
to support a junior Major-General to command
in India. Inde omnis effusus labor. I was
exceedingly vexed at this. I regretted that I
had consulted the Duke. I regretted that, if I
did consult him, I had not brought his authority
immediately to bear. I regretted also that I had,
to a certain degree, compromised myself, by
attempting to do what I thought right, and failing
in a way which might appear wrong.

We had a very long talk together, and Lord
Tweeddale confessed that I had occasion to com-
plain of the Duke, as well as of Lord Hill, for
not telling me their opinions at once. Of the
Duke, Lord Tweeddale said he was not the man
he had been. Of Lord Hill, he said that he was

CHAP. VI. EDUCATION SCHEME L}1.">

the man he always had been. Lord Tweeddale 1839.
concluded by offering, very handsomely, to accept
some inferior command in India. He said he
had made up his mind to take that step ; and,
if necessary, to leave his wife, from whom he
had not been separated for twenty-two years, in
England. I replied that, so far as I was
concerned, he should go to India as Commander-
in-Chief, or not at all ; and I advised him to
consider the matter as at an end. I recorded
this transaction at greater length than usual for
obvious reasons.

On July 11 I went to Buckingham Palace,
to attend the Queen on her reception of the
Lords' Address against our Educational Scheme.1
There was a crowd at the gates, and, as my
carriage drove through, several persons hissed
and made faces, whilst others cheered and waved
handkerchiefs. When I got to the Palace, I
went to the balcony, where were some colleagues,
who, I found, had met with the same sort of
reception, particularly Russell and Howick. The
Peers generally, including, of course, the Bishops,
were much applauded ; but the mob did not know
what to do with our Lord Chancellor, who closed

1 Since 1833 an annual grant of £20,000 had been made for
educational purposes, and was divided between the National Society
and tin- British and Foreign School Society, as the larger part
of the existing education was carried on by these Church Societies.
This gave rise to complaint that the Church of England received
more than her due. The new proposals were to increase the grant
to £30,000 and to appoint a Committee of the Privy Council to
administer it. In spite of much opposition this was done.

216 LONDON CHAP. VI.

1839. the procession in his official robes. He carried
the Address. We saw Cecil Forrester, on horse-
back, evidently directing the populace; and it
was said that Messrs. Henry Baring, Bonham,
and Ross were there, but I did not see them.
The procession was long, and as many as a
hundred Peers were present. The Duke of
Wellington was not one of them. He said he
would not lead a mob to the Palace.

When the Queen was seated on the throne the
doors were opened, and the Peers walked forward.
The Lord Chancellor read the long Address, and
seemed to me to do so with as little effect as
possible. He handed it to H.M., who gave it to
Lord Melbourne, and Lord Melbourne then handed
to the Queen her answer. The Queen placed it on
her lap, and then read it, in a steady, audible
voice, neither faltering, nor changing colour, nor
laying too much stress on any part of it. She was
perfectly calm and dignified, but I thought Lord
Melbourne looked nervous when H.M. stated her
regret at the Peers having taken this step. I saw
one or two of the Bishops were startled a little ;
but the Archbishop of Canterbury looked like a
saint or martyr, resigned to whatever might befall
him. When the Lords had retired, I saw the
Queen smile. She descended from her throne in
great good-humour, and, when she saw Lord Lans-
downe afterwards in her closet, she told him she
had never seen so many Tories all together in her
life before.

CHAP. VI. THE DUKE ON THE BIRMINGHAM RIOTS 217

On retiring from the Palace we met with the 1839.
same intermixture of sounds as had greeted us on
our entrance. Amongst the most vehement of the
hissers and groaners, I observed one or two of
those who had for years stood by me on the Covent
Garden hustings ; and who, like the rest " of the
crowd of 11 emus, " have since returned to their
allegiance.

The House of Commons was counted out on
July 16, but in the Lords the Duke of Wellington
made some intemperate remarks about the riots
which occurred at Birmingham the night before,
and which, to say the truth, were very serious,
but hardly justified his Grace in saying that the
town was in a state worse than if it had been
taken by storm. He talked also of this once
happy and peaceful England, forgetting in what
a condition it was in 1830, when he himself was
Prime Minister. Lord Melbourne replied to him,
more angrily than usual ; and Lord Lansdowne
defended Lord John Russell, manfully, against an
attack made on him by Lord Lyndhurst.

The' following Wednesday Russell gave a tem-
perate rebuke to the Duke of Wellington for the
exaggerations of his recent speech, and promised
an inquiry into the conduct of the Birmingham
magistrates.

This day, July 20, I had a large dinner-party —
the Chairman and Deputy Chairman of the East
India Company (Sir Robert Campbell and Mr.
Russell Ellice), Sir John M'Neill, Lord Hill, Lord

VOL. v 28

218 LONDON CHAP. VI.

1839. Melbourne, Lord Palmerston, Lord Methuen,
Count Bjornstierne, Lord John Russell, Mr.
Macaulay, Mr. Stanley, and Mr. Charles Wood.
After dinner Lord Melbourne, Macaulay, and
myself had a conversation which was interesting,
both from the subject and from the able manner
in which it was treated by Lord M. and Macaulay.
It related to the character of the Nonconformists,
and also to the spirit and temper of the clergy of
our day. Lord Melbourne rather defended, and
Macaulay rather attacked, the latter. I was sur-
prised at the freedom with which Macaulay spoke
on these subjects.

Amongst other things he told us of Henry
Drummond,1 that, for some time, he never sat
down to dinner without a vacant place at his
table, with a gold cup and salver before it. This
was for the Shiloh. Melbourne said that Drum-
mond was mad on that subject; and he observed
that nothing was more foolish than to believe that
a man might not be completely mad on one
subject, particularly religion, and yet very sane,
and worldly, and businesslike, on all others. Many
men, remarked Lord Melbourne, were in that con-
dition in the present day. Lord Melbourne then
said he would not make a latitudinarian clergyman
a Bishop. He would not make Dr. Arnold, who, he
believed, was a Unitarian. The Attorney- General
here observed that he himself was a Unitarian.

1 The banker (born 1786) and, with Edward Irving, joint founder
of the Catholic Apostolic Church, commonly known as the Irvingites.

CHAP. VI. BTJNHILL FIELDS 219

They talked of Dr. Johnson, a subject with 1839.
which Macaulay was familiar; and hoth he and
Lord Melbourne said he was a very great man, and
a very good man. The latter said that his faith
was that of a man who tried to make himself
believe in revelation, and could hardly succeed.
In proof of this I quoted the famous saying of
Johnson in favour of ghosts — that he should like
to see one, in order to have additional evidence of
the spiritual world.

The energy and volubility of Macaulay's talk
were surprising, but somewhat overpowering.
Lord Melbourne, however, seemed to listen to it
with complacency, as if for instruction.

Dining early with my partners in Chiswell
Street, I walked out, and saw what I had never
seen before, the Artillery-ground, and also Bunhill
Fields burying-ground — a most popular field of
death. I read one or two most curious epitaphs ;
amongst them, one of Dame Mary Page, relict of
Sir Gregory Page. The lady, it appeared, had
died in 1728, and it was thought worthy of record
that she had been tapped, for a dropsy, sixty-six
times in sixty-seven months, and that 240 gallons
of water were drawn from her.

On July 27, meeting Lord Falkland, one of
our whips in the Lords, he told me that the
real majority against us in that House was 130 ;
and that Lord Redesdale, the Tory whip, had
agreed with him to act upon honour, as it was
called — that is, not to attempt any surprises or

220 LONDON CHAP. VI.

1839. tricks, which, indeed, would have been superfluous
for a party having such a majority in hand.
This, Lord Falkland told me, made his work
somewhat less troublesome than it would otherwise
have been ; but it was still disagreeable enough.

PROM DIARY.

August 1. — At our Cabinet to-day Russell gave
us an account of the state of the country. It
seems that one or two of the Chartist leaders
have sold themselves and communicate their
correspondence to us. I believe Hetherington to
be one. A letter to him from one Williams was
read, in which the prospects of the Chartists were
represented as bad so long as the middle classes
were either adverse or neuter. But their numbers
are favourable, and their leaders — some of them —
determined enough. One of their modes of action
is to fill a church and take possession of the pews
before the owners come to their seats.

FROM BOOK, " RECOLLECTIONS. "

At this time the Lords threw out our Portuguese
Slave-trading Bill, which had passed unanimously
and almost silently, in the Commons. The Duke
of Wellington led the opposition to it, declaring
he did not intend to divide upon the question.
Lord Lyndhurst told me he had nothing to do
with the business, but he was not a leader, he
was led ; he was a private soldier, and did as he
was bid. Brougham walked away, and pretended,

CHAP. VI. STATE OF THE BANK OF ENGLAND 221

he did not know there would be a vote on the 1839.
subject. The next day he moved an Address to
the Crown to instruct our naval authorities to
put down the slave-trade !

At our next Cabinet we discussed what ought
to be done on the rejection of the Portuguese
Slave-trading Bill ; and we resolved unanimously
that the Queen should inform Parliament that
she would issue orders to her naval commanders
to seize slavers, and that application would be
made to Parliament to carry these orders into full
effect. This would obviate the objections of the
Duke of Wellington, and would at the same time
give due protection to the captors of the vessels.

August 5. — There was a ball at the Palace.
I do not think the ladies danced well; and I
thought they might have been more decorously
dressed at the Court of a maiden Queen.

August 8. — This evening we were attacked by
our Radical friends, and occasional supporters,
T. Buncombe and Wakley, who were answered
quietly but effectually by Russell. It was on
this occasion that the Duke of Wellington said,
on hearing that our leader had a host of
opponents, " Yes, but Lord John Russell is a
host in himself."

August 10. — At our Cabinet to-day Rice brought
before us the state of the Bank of England, and
told us that, if we had a bad harvest, we should
be obliged to have recourse to a Bank Restriction
Act. The Governor and Deputv Governor of

222 LONDON CHAP. VI.

1839. the Bank, who had hitherto made light of their
difficulties, now began to he frightened. However,
the loan of £750,000 from the East India Company
had given some assistance ; and the funding three
millions would do something more. Besides which
the exchanges were improving, and the catastrophe
might not occur.

The so-called Convention, alarmed, perhaps, by
the conviction of the Chartist rioters, had given
up their project of assembling at some sacred
mount and remaining there until their grievances
were redressed. The advice was good enough;
but it remained to be seen whether it would be
followed by the masses, who were to have had
three days of processions and speeches. The day
fixed for this was August 12. "God bless us,"
said Lord Melbourne ; " why, that is the day
after to-morrow ; 'tis time for us to be looking
about us."

I rode and walked, and dined with the Methuens,
in Park Street — a pleasant party. Lord Melbourne
was there. He was silent and absent at first,
and talked a good deal to himself; but he got
very agreeable afterwards.

Amongst other things, Melbourne expressed a
strong preference for the Church of England as
compared with other Christian sects. We then
discussed the capacity and general power of
Roebuck. Eonblanque and myself thought little
of them; but Spring Rice and Campbell spoke
very highly of him in that respect. Lord Mel-

CHAP. VI. MINISTERIAL FISH DINNER 223

bourne was much pleased when I said that he 1839.
(Roebuck) spoke not to our heads, nor our hearts,
but to our throats. This was quite true in those
days ; but the orator in question, like most of us,
has been softened by age; and I will take this
opportunity of adding that I was not an impar-
tial judge.

In spite of " the prophet of ill," the next
day, August 12, passed off quietly, although,
such was the general impression, that a crowd in
Kensington Gardens was mistaken for a Chartist
meeting ; whereas the good folks had come to
see a Mr. Hampton descend from a parachute.
The poor man fell into a tree, and was for a
short time insensible ; but he soon recovered,
and was not much hurt.

On August 17 I dined at Holland House,
and went afterwards to the Opera. It was the
farewell night of the season, and the National
Anthem was sung as usual, but received coldly.

August 21. — We had our ministerial fish dinner
at Black wall. The party was smaller than usual,
and "the fun" not so "fast and furious" as I
had sometimes found at this concluding feast.
But we had some amusement for our money.
The Lord-Advocate, Rutherford, accused Attorney-
General Campbell of having caused the convic-
tion of certain patriots, who were guilty of
nothing but following his advice not to pay
taxes ; on which Campbell replied that in giving
that advice he had followed the example of more

22 1 LONDON CHAP.VL

1839 than one of his masters there present ; adding
that, as to the convicts in custody, there was an
easy way of relieving them — namely, to send
Normanby on a mission to release them. At
which there was a great laugh; but Normanby
did not like the joke at all, and gave a serious
explanation of what he had done in Ireland,
which did not at all mend his case.

August 26. — We had a Council at Court. Lord
Melbourne read the Queen's Speech to us. Her
Majesty was very attentive to Lord Melbourne's
reading. She did not look so strong as usual,
but I thought her more interesting than ever.
Lord Albemarle told me she had not been very
well of late.

FROM DIABY.

August 27. — Prorogation of Parliament. The
day was very fine, and the procession looked
more gay than usual. The crowd was very or-
derly, but I heard very little acclamation. There
was some waving of handkerchiefs, and H.M.
seemed to watch for an opportunity to acknow-
ledge the loyalty of her people. The Chronicle
says her reception was enthusiastic; the Tory
papers deny it. It is said one man attempted
to hiss, and was knocked down at once. I heard
no hissing, nor any word of the dissatisfaction
which the Post and other papers have been pro-
phesying would be shown, in order to deter the
Queen from proroguing in person.

CHAP. VI. X)RD LYXDHrRST '2'2b

The Queen delivered her Speech admirably, but 1839
not in quite so strong a voice as usual. She laid
an impressive emphasis on the passage relative
to the suppression of the Slave-trade.

Leaving the House of Lords after the conclu-
sion of the ceremonies, I met Lord Lyndhurst
and his wife. He, as usual, was very civil. He
congratulated me on the successes of our Indian
army.1 I thought him a wonderful man then,
when he was only sixty-seven years old. He
lived to be past ninety, and when I saw him had
lost none of his intellectual vigour.

I dined in the evening at St. James's Palace.
Melbourne, Palmerston, and P. Thomson were
also there; as were Duke Ferdinand of Saxe-
Coburg and his daughter. I sat next to the
governess of the young Princess — a most agree-
able lady — and had much talk with her. In the
drawing-room the Queen came up to me and
conversed some time. Lord Melbourne occupied
his accustomed arm-chair next to the Queen.

August 29. — At our Council to-day Lord Nor-
manby read the Minutes in so low a voice that
Lord Melbourne turned to me and said, "He
reads as if the secrets of the Privy Council were
to be kept secret even from ourselves." The
Queen overheard the remark, and burst into a
laugh. H.M. continued to smile during the re-
mainder of the proceedings.

1 Kabul wa» eaptand and Shah Soojah ramrtated on the

-

VOL. V

226 LONDON CHAP. VI.

1839. August 31. — I read Brougham's speech at the
Wellington Cinque Ports festival, where he pro-
posed the Duke's health. Such monstrous adula-
tion I never met with before; and this, too, in
regard to the man of whom he said only last year,
" Westminster Abbey yawns for him." I saw that
Burdett figured also on this occasion, and could
not keep his tongue or hands off us. He was the
only man who talked politics at this festival. I
had met Brougham the last Wednesday, as I was
riding to Richmond, and he then told me, with
much exultation, that he had been chosen to pro-
pose the Duke's health.

Strange mortal ! On Monday he made a com-
plimentary speech respecting Lord Melbourne,
and begged him to employ his manly and vigorous
understanding in perfecting a scheme of national
education ; and he then talked of his ancient
attachment to Lord Melbourne, and sobbed
aloud. The melting mood did not last long with
him; for, talking of recent changes, he called
Labouchere and George Grey grands faineants,
and congratulated me on not having to deal
with Sheil

September 20. — Lord Holland told me to-day that
Lord Clarendon had been offered the Privy Seal
with Cabinet rank, and Macaulay Secretaryship
of War with Cabinet rank. Lord John Russell
was in high spirits, and said he should begin next
session with perfect confidence of success. He
thought Peel had confirmed the Government in

CHAP. VI. THE CHINESE QUESTION 227

power by his conduct in May. Peel certainly 1839.
has done something to keep himself out; but I
do not see how he can keep us in. At least,
not if he opposes us every night, as he did last
session.

FROM BOOK, " RECOLLECTIONS."

On September 26 I had a letter from Lord
Melbourne, desiring me to attend a Council at
Windsor to swear in Macaulay. Lord Melbourne*"
added that Her Majesty wished me to stay at the
Castle two or three days.

October 1. — We had an early Cabinet, and dis-
cussed the China question. Palmerston laid
before us a detail of the occurrences at Canton.1
He showed how one line-of-battleship, with two
frigates and two or three steamers, and some
small armed vessels, might blockade the whole
coast, from the river of Pekin down to the coast
at Canton. I told him that this proposal had
been made by Mr. Lindsay in 1836, when Lord
Napier died.

1 In 1837 the Chinese Government decided to put down the opium
traffic, a measure which was hotly opposed by the English merchants,
who held large quantities of the drug. Captain Elliot, our re-
presentative, foreseeing trouble, had asked for the appointment
of a Commission, but this advice was disregarded by the Home
Government. Smuggling went on apace, and in the end Elliot had
to surrender some £4,000,000 worth of opium, which was burnt.
Trouble ensued, and Elliot, in conjunction with his cousin, Admiral
Elliot, took the Bogue Forts, and concluded a preliminary treaty
with the Chinese. This was soon broken, and Elliot was on the
point of taking Canton a second time when he was superseded by
Mr. H. Pottinger.

228 WINDSOR CHAP. VI.

1839. Macaulay was exceedingly eloquent against the
Chinese, and was decidedly for hostile measures.
He spoke with his usual volubility and eagerness ;
but I thought he spoke too much. Labouchere
whispered to me that, if he was always so powerful
in talking, no business would be done. Baring
asked what was to be done in regard to the two
millions of money which the merchants had lost,
by giving up their opium to save the lives of
ffcElliot and the other English. Lord Melbourne
was decidedly of opinion that the British Govern-
ment should not pay the money. Labouchere
thought that the East India Company should pay
it. Macaulay was for seizing Chinese property;
so was Palmers ton.

After a long discussion, in which I was backed
by Lord Melbourne, in expressing some doubts
of the expediency and the results of blockading
a coast of some thousand miles or more, it was
determined to send a squadron to the China
seas, and to instruct the Governor- General of
India to co-operate with the admiral in command
of our ships in taking whatever measures might
be found necessary.

Before we separated I whispered to Macaulay
that the charges made against us of idleness
could hardly be sustained ; for at the first Cabinet
which he had attended we had resolved upon a
war with the master of Syria and Egypt, backed
by France, and also on a war with the master
of one-third of the human race. He laughed

CHAP. VI. REPORT OF BROUGHAM'S DEATH 229

and said : " He had no doubts about our Chinese 1839.
policy, but did not feel so certain as to our
Egyptian."

After business I rode with the Queen in the
park and the forest for two hours, and got wet
through.

During this visit I went over the State Apart-
ments. They appeared to me very imposing.
The morning-rooms contained the busts and flags
of Marlborough and Wellington. The head of
Nelson was on a shaft, cut out of the mainmast
of the Victory, with a cannon-shot hole through it.
We were shown the library, which seemed to con-
tain a very large collection of books, considering
the short time it had been in hand.

The Princess Augusta dined at the Castle, and
in the evening I played at whist with H.R/.H.
She thanked me for the Assam tea which I had
sent to her as well as to the other members of
the Royal Family. The Queen was in great
spirits, and laughed a good deal with me at the
ducking we had got on our ride in the morning.

I left the Castle on October 3, and went to Erie
Stoke, where I resumed my official work.

October 22. — I had a letter from Methuen,
telling me that Count d'Orsay had just told him
the news that Brougham had been thrown out of
a carriage, knocked on the skull, and, the wheel
going over his head, was killed on the spot.
Leader, who was with him, was also thrown out,
and was not expected to live. Methuen said that

230 ERLE STOKE CHAP. VI.

1839. D'Orsay had seen the letter, which was addressed to
young Alfred Montgomery, from Brougham Hall,
and there was no doubt of the story. My brother
T.B. wrote the same account to his sister Matilda.
I moralised a little on the catastrophe ; but
said, at dinner, that, after all, I had some mis-
giving as to the truth of the story, and I should
not be surprised if it turned out to have been got
up by Brougham himself, in order to see what
would be said of him. I did not, however, com-
municate my suspicions to my correspondent, for
fear of appearing unfeeling, and of making a joke
of a great disaster.

The next day came a letter from Methuen to
say the story was not true; and that Brougham
was suspected of having invented the tale himself.
My sister Matilda had a letter to the same effect
from her brother. It seemed that the newspapers,
all but the Times, gave entire credit to the story.
The Morning Post bewailed the event most dolefully,
the Morning Chronicle a good deal, and no journal
abused the supposed defunct, even when the hoax
was discovered, nor was the real author of it
suspected ; but the trick was imputed to a Mr.
Shafto, who was at Brougham Hall at the time,
but denied having written the letter. Brougham,
however, had written a letter confessing that he
originated the joke, as he called it. D'Orsay took
this to Sir Arthur Paget, Avho showed my brother
Edward the letter. D'Orsay published a letter
denying that he mentioned the story at White's

CHAP. VI. CAPTURE OF GUZNEE 231

in an unfeeling manner, and my friend Methuen, 1839.
more kindly than wisely, published a confirmation
of that fact. Altogether the trick is a wretched
sample of Brougham's love of notoriety and char-
acteristic cunning. It is quite sufficient to say, at
this distance of time and place, that the tale was
a very paltry fiction, devised to administer to a
mind diseased.

On October 31 I heard the important news of
the capture of Guznee by Outram, and the entrance
of Shah Soojah into Cabul, on August 7 last.
Thus, it appeared, had ended this campaign.

Of all our colleagues, the one that was most
pleased with these successes was Lord Palmerston ;
and I always found in him a cordial sympathiser
in every variety of fortune, more particularly in
success — a very rare quality — at least I have found
it so : for many of those who are willing to stand
by a friend in adversity are but lukewarm
applauders of victory. This does not arise from
jealousy or indifference, but from a dislike of
exaggeration, as was the case with Lord Melbourne,
who, I heard, had been laughing, with the
Adjutant-General, at the taking of Guznee.

I was not a little annoyed at this, and wrote to
Lord Melbourne entreating him to be a little more
reserved in his comments when communicating
with persons not in the Cabinet. He answered me
with his usual kindness ; saying that the affair
was brilliant, but that he was in the habit of
thinking nothing settled until completely finished.

232 LONDON CHAP. VI.

1839. Subsequent events showed how right his rule had
been, and how properly applied in the case of our
Afghan triumphs.

I dined at Holland House on November 4, with
Sir Robert Adair, Le Marchant, and a small party.
In the evening Lady Clanricarde joined us, and
we talked of Brougham's hoax. Some of us talked
rather freely of the affair, and I felt sure the con-
versation would be reported to the person princi-
pally concerned ; and so it was, for, a day or two
afterwards, I had a letter from Brougham, de-
nouncing the Court and Holland House, and,
amongst other things, saying it was impossible he
should have been the author of the story, but
never denying it positively. My own opinion was
that, although he might not have actually origi-
nated it, he was cognisant of it.

I again dined at Holland House with a large
party on November 7. Lady Holland tried to
persuade me to dine at the Lord Mayor's dinner
on the 9th. I replied that I did not wish to go to
be hissed. She replied, there was no fear of that ;
I had victories at my back. I told her that I
knew the citizens of London better than she did.
They neither knew nor cared about India, and
had no other object than to gratify themselves by
hissing men in power, who were the enemies of
their monopoly. I heard afterwards that the
Ministry were very much hissed at the Guildhall
dinner, and that Lord Melbourne was not suffered
to speak for five minutes.

CHAP. VI. THE QUEEN'S ENGAGEMENT 233

FROM DIARY. 1839.

November 14. — Went to Covent Garden to see
the School for Scandal. I did not like any of
the actors except perhaps Madame Vestris.
Charles Matthews was ahominable in Charles
Surface ; and, by the way, the conduct of Charles
when Lady Teazle is discovered seems unfeeling,
ungentlemanlike, and cruel. In his delight at
the exposure of Joseph he quite forgets her situa-
tion and seems to enjoy her confusion.

The audience did not appear to understand the
merit of the play, and were much better pleased
with the buffoonery of the farce which followed,
and in which Charles Matthews did show wonder-
ful powers of mimicry !

FROM BOOK, "RECOLLECTIONS."

At a Cabinet dinner on November 18, Lord
Melbourne began, and said, " I suppose you all
expect that we should settle about this marriage."
He then proceeded to inform us that, the Queen
having decided to marry Prince Albert of Saxe-
Coburg and Gotha, it was necessary to take
measures for that purpose immediately. He said
he had been looking into the precedents and found
that, when George III. married, he assembled the
Privy Council and made a declaration of his
intentions to them. We next talked of the settle-
ment to be made upon the Prince. Lord Mel-
bourne mentioned that it was the wish, both of
the Queen and Prince, that the establishment
VOL. v 30

234 LONDON CHAP. VI.

1839. of the Prince should be small. As to his pension,
if he survived the Queen, Lord Melbourne men-
tioned the precedents in regard to the pensions of
surviving Queen-Consorts. He added that the
pension of Prince George of Denmark* was
£100,000 a year, which he (Lord Melbourne)
thought too much; and he added that, in his
opinion, £50,000 a year would be enough. Most
of us concurred in this, except that Lord Holland
was inclined to give more, and Lord John Russell
seemed determined against giving so much, saying
that the pension granted to the Duchess of Kent
was quite enough, and that nothing was so dan-
gerous to a monarchy as making these preposter-
ous grants. He added that the farmers and
others in the country continually talked of the
expenses of the Royal Family, and were disgusted
with them. " Is it .not so ? " he concluded,
turning to me. Lord John then declared that
he was not prepared to move the House of
Commons for any large establishment or pension
for Prince Albert. The general opinion, how-
ever, being in favour of £50,000, he at last
reluctantly gave way.

At our Cabinet on November 20 Lord Mel-
bourne read to us his proposed Queen's Declara-
tion. It was very good, and Macaulay, who
seemed the established critic, extolled it highly.

The following day I went to Buckingham
Palace and requested an audience on Indian
affairs. There was no Lord-in-waiting, nor

CHAP. VI. REFORM OF EQUITY COURTS 235

Groom ; and, after some time, I was shown into 1839.
the closet by a page. I waited some little time
before the Queen came in. H.M. apologised for
having kept me waiting, and, having seated her-
self on one side of the table, desired me to sit in
the arm-chair opposite.

The Queen was looking very well, and was in
high spirits, and more than usually gracious;
although she was always gracious — at least, I
never saw her otherwise.

The Duke of Wellington has been very ill;
so ill that we had discussions in the Cabinet as to
the ceremonies to be observed in case of his death.

November 22. — At the Cabinet, on this day,
the Lord Chancellor told us that some reform
of the Equity Courts was indispensable. He
told us that suitors could not be persuaded to go
to the Rolls Court ; and he mentioned to me,
privately, that my friend Bickersteth did not give
satisfaction. He was even petulant with the
counsel who practised in his Court; yet no man
could make a clearer statement of a case, or
seemed to have a capacity more eminently judicial.

But I think I have remarked that lawyers are
not very lenient in dealing with the defects of
their professional antagonists or even professional
friends ; and I recollect hearing of a comment
made by a very celebrated Chancery practitioner,
Bell, who said to Shadwell, when first made
Vice-Chancellor, " Now, Shadwell, you must begin
to learn to think."

236 LONDON CHAP. VI.

1839. This day I dined with the Queen ; excepting
Lord Melbourne and the Officers of the house-
hold, there were no other guests, so we dined in
a small room downstairs. H.M. remarked on
the smallness of the room, on which Lord Mel-
bourne said, " It is twice as big as Lady Holland's
dining-room, as Hobhouse knows."

I had some talk with Madame Lehzen, formerly
the governess of Her Majesty. She said of Prince
Albert that the Queen appreciated him, and ex-
pected to be happy with him. Lord Palmerston
had before told me as much, and added that the
Duchess of Cambridge had informed him that the
match had been projected since the childhood of
the parties. The Queen came up to me in the
drawing-room, and laughed with me at the gentle-
men staying so long in the dining-room : an
indiscretion which, H.M. said, the new Lord
.Chamberlain (Lord Err oil) had imputed to Lord
Melbourne insisting on my giving an account of
the taking of Guznee. I remarked that every
fault was sure to be imputed to Lord Melbourne ;
but that, fortunately, he was strong enough to
bear anything. To which the Queen assented,
laughing heartily.

Her Majesty sat down, and desired me to play
at chess with Miss Cocks, one of her household.
I did so, and won a game, and I was winning
another when H.M. rose and went to bed. H.M.
asked who had won, and, being told, said, " I
thought so," and seemed pleased, I knew not why.

CHAP. VI. THE QUEEN'S DECLARATION 237

The next day I went to a Council at Bucking- 1839.
ham Palace, to hear Her Majesty declare her
intended marriage. The room seemed full, but
there were not more than ninety Privy Councillors
present. The Duke of Wellington was there, and
took his seat not far from the Queen. Peel and
Lyndhurst kept at the bottom of the room, so
did Brougham, who was dressed fantastically, I
thought, in a wig and gown; but perhaps the
costume was correct.

The Queen did not appear until two o'clock.
We all rose as she entered the room ; she desired
us to be seated. She looked pale, and red under
the eyes, and, when she began her Declaration,
her voice faltered a little ; but she soon recovered
herself, and got through her disagreeable duty
with admirable presence of mind, reading her
speech in a strong, decided tone, and looking up
from her paper, with dignified composure, on
those around and before her.

Lord Lansdowne, as President of the Council,
performed his part well ; and, in the name of all
the Privy Councillors, requested Her Majesty to
be graciously pleased to publish her Declaration.
But he told ma that he felt very nervous at the
time. The Queen withdrew immediately after
putting the Declaration into Lord Lansdowne's
hand.

Dining this day, November 23, 1839, at S.S.B.S.,
I heard that the Duke of Cambridge said to
Brougham, in his way : " Eh, eh ! so I hear you

238 LONDON — ERLE STOKE CHAP. VI.

1839. killed yourself, and wrote an account of your own
death." On which Brougham said he should like
to have proofs of that. On which H.E.H. replied,
"No proofs are wanting; you know you did."
This passed at the Queen's Council of Declaration
of Marriage, in the hearing of several persons
present.

On November 24 I dined with Lord Holland.
He mentioned that at the peace with America, in
1782, there was a project for giving up Gibraltar
in exchange for the Havannah ; and the Duke of
Eichmond, then a member of the Cabinet, de-
nounced it in the House of Lords. The late
King, William IV., thought that the present
Lord Lansdowne might entertain the same
project as his father, and he spoke of it to
Lord Grey, and protested he would never con-
sent to it.

PROM DIARY.

November 29. — I went to Erie Stoke. During
these holidays I received some agreeable guests,
and, what with shooting and other pastimes, passed
a very pleasant time of it. Lord and Lady
Seymour (the Queen of Beauty, and a very beau-
tiful creature she was), and several members of
the Court of Directors visited me.

Lady Seymour is surpassingly beautiful, with
manners perhaps a little eccentric. Lord Seymour
is a much more clever man than his look and
manners would induce any one to believe.

CHAP. VI. THE POET BOWLES 239

FROM BOOK, " RECOLLECTIONS." 1*39.

When my little party broke up, I went to
Bo wood. There I found Thomas Moore, Lord
and Lady Dunfermline, Lord Radnor, and his son
Edward Bouverie. Mr. Senior was also there. I
had not been previously acquainted with him, and
could not say that I was much charmed with him:
afterwards, when I knew him better, I liked him
better. Lady Kerry, widow of Lord Lansdowne's
eldest son, was one of the guests.

Lord Lansdowne, as usual, was the most agree-
able of all those at his table. He told some
excellent stories of poet Bowles, who, amongst
other eccentricities, was afraid of sleeping out of
his own house. When last at Bowood, he went to
look at several rooms before he could fix upon his
room. In one room he was afraid of fire, in
another of thieves. He was very careful of his
literary fame, and once asked Lord Lansdowne to
accompany him to a book-club sale, in order that
Lord L. might buy the poem, " The Spirit of Dis-
covery," at a fair price, in order that it might not
appear to have lost its value, the reverend author
promising to buy it again of Lord Lansdowne at
the money his lordship gave for it. It would
have been well if this very middling poet had con-
fined himself to such vagaries; but he did not,
and broke out now and then into sallies which
showed that he could be spiteful and malicious,
and not over-scrupulous in confining himself to
the decencies of controversy.

240 BOWOOD — LONDON CHAP. VI.

18:9. This visit would have been more agreeable if I
had not noticed the woeful change in the appear-
ance of my hostess. Poor Lady Lansdowne was
but the wreck of the beautiful woman I had
known in former days; her hair was grey, her
eyes dim, her cheeks furrowed, yet she assumed
a gaiety which ill concealed the grief caused by
the death of her eldest son, and of her dear friend,
Mary Ricardo ; to say nothing of the dangerous
illness of her daughter.

1840. January 9, 1840. — At our Cabinet to-day we
turned to the news which had just arrived, of the
conviction of Frost,1 and the recommendation of
the jury for mercy. Lord Melbourne said he saw
little in that recommendation; the jury were
frightened, so was the judge. For his own part
he felt certain that some decided measures were
indispensable to prevent anarchy. He added that,
as for himself, he was prepared for them. I
remarked that, as the object of the Chartists was
to knock us on the head and rob us of our
property, we might as well arrive at the catas-
trophe after a struggle as without it ; we could
only fail, and we might succeed. " Exactly so,"
replied Lord Melbourne.

At our next Cabinet Lord Normanby read to us
a letter he had received from Sir T. Phillips at
Monmouth, saying that every one there was
astonished at Chief Justice Tindal's charge to the

1 John Frost, Chartist. Led an armed mob into Newport, 1839 ;
transported to Van Diemen's Land, 1840.

CHAP. VI. MACAULAY ON CLIVE

jury on the trial of Frost, and that nothing but 1840.
the firmness of the jury had saved the country
from the triumph of the Chartists. Lord Holland,
however, in Cabinet, said he did not see how the
recommendation to mercy was to be overlooked.
Macaulay said the House of Lords had addressed
George I., in 1715, to spare the rebel Lords.

We had some discussion as to the form in which
the Royal marriage should be announced, and
considered whether Prince Albert was competent
to make a treaty of marriage. Palmers ton showed
the paper which Baron Stockmar had given him,
and asked if any one of us could read German in
a written hand. Lord Clarendon took the paper,
and, quietly reading it himself, explained the
purport of it, and told us it was signed by Prince
Albert himself, and not by his father. It was
settled that Palmerston should arrange this
paragraph.

FROM DIARY.

January 13. — At Cabinet to-day, Macaulay,
talking of the suicide of Lord Clive, told us that,
passing through a room where a lady was writing,
she asked him (Lord Clive) to mend her pen.
He did so, and then, walking into his own room,
cut his throat with the penknife he had just used.

FROM BOOK, " RECOLLECTIONS."

On January 15 we had a Council at Bucking-
ham Palace, when the Queen's Speech was read.

VOL. v 31

242 LONDON CHAP. VI.

1840. Her Majesty was quite unmoved at the announce-
ment of her own marriage.

The next day Her Majesty opened the Parlia-
ment in person. I heard that she was a little
nervous at the beginning of her Speech, hut soon
recovered herself. She was much applauded by
the populace. The crowd in the streets was
considerable ; there was no disturbance of any
kind. The first proceedings had reference to our
privileges.

In the Lords the Duke of Wellington made
a speech which I thought unwise, and insisted
upon the word " Protestant " before the mention of
Prince Albert. Lord Melbourne deprecated this ;
but, of course, gave way.

At the Cabinet of January 17 Lord Normanby
told us that the Attorney -General had made
promises to the prisoners 1 of greater leniency, if
they pleaded guilty, than he was authorised to
do; and that the Judges complained of him, as
well as of the committing magistrates. All, how-
ever, agreed that C. J. Tindal pleaded like an
advocate for Frost, so much so that when the

1 The trial of John Frost for high treason in planning an attack on
Newport, was begun at Monmouth on December 31, 1839. At the
outset a technical point was raised as to the names of witnesses not
having been given beforehand to the defendant. This point was
reserved for the judges in London. Frost and his accomplices,
Williams and Jones, were found guilty. They thereupon pleaded
guilty in the hope of getting their sentence transmuted to trans-
portation. On January 28, 1840, the point as to witnesses was
decided in favour of the prisoners, who were then sentenced to
transportation. The Attorney-General was Sir John (afterwards
Lord) Campbell

CHAP. VI. THE QUEEN'S OPINION OF PEEL 243

jury went out, all the Crown counsel retired to
consider what they should do when Frost was
acquitted, which they considered certain.

We have won the Southwark election. Russell
told me that when H.M. heard the election news,
she was out riding ; and on receiving it said,
"Good news — good news; I shall ride no more
to-day."

Russell also told me that when he mentioned to
the Queen that Peel had spoken in handsome
terms of her in his speech on the Address, H.M.
said, " I am glad of it ; hut it is all very well, he
and I shall never love one another." H.M. is of
too kindly a nature to he capable of permanent
dislikes, and could not foresee what I witnessed —
namely, that at the death of Sir Robert Peel she
was inconsolable, wept like a child, and was with
difficulty persuaded to proceed with the ordinary
business of the State.1

January 29. — A Cabinet sat on the case of
Frost and his accomplices. We had a very painful
deliberation. Lord Melbourne gave his opinion,
and concluded by saying that Frost had been
convicted of the highest crime known to British
law, under the most aggravating circumstances;
and that, in his opinion, the welfare of society
and the demands of justice required that he should

1 " I have little to add to Albert's letter of yesterday, except my
fxtreme admiration of our worthy Peel, who shows himself a man of
unbounded loyalty, courage, patriotism, and highmindedness, and his
conduct towards me has been chivalrous almost, I might say." —
Queen Victoria to King of the Belgians, December 23, 1845.

244 LONDON CHAP. VI.

1840. suffer the extreme penalty of the law. Our
opinions were given seriatim; and, after some
hesitation on the part of Lord Palmerston and
Macaulay, we decided unanimously that Frost
should be executed. The Lord Chancellor was
most decided in this opinion.

We then considered the cases of Williams and
Jones ; and, after a good deal of discussion, decided
that they also should he executed. Labouchere
opposed this on the ground that "the execution
of Frost would answer better than that of the
three traitors." The Lord Chancellor said that
there was no difference between the three cases ;
and that, so far as the evidence went, Williams
and Jones were rather more criminal than
Frost.

I left the Cabinet with a full conviction that
all the three would be executed, and, though I
had given a decided opinion in the affirmative,
felt exceedingly nervous and depressed at being
compelled to discharge so painful a duty.

At our next Cabinet meeting, however, Lord
Normanby told us that he had seen Chief Justice
Tindal, who had told him it would be advisable
for the Government to consider whether, under
all the circumstances, the lives of the criminals
might not be spared. This opinion produced a
great effect; and even Lord Melbourne confessed
that it would be difficult to execute the men
after such a hint. Very little more was said ;
but it was determined that Lord Normanby should

CHAP. VI. ARRIVAL OF PRINCE ALBERT 245

get Chief Justice Tindal to state his views in 1840.
writing, and that the sentences should he com-
muted to transportation for life, as an act of
grace, totally unconnected with any objections
which the lawyers had m;i<lr in the course of the
trials. It appeared that Lord Normanby had
written the night before to Monmouth, fixing the
execution for the next Thursday. I was not at
all pleased with the conduct of the Government
in this matter; and I heard, privately, an ex-
planation of it, which gave a tinge of ridicule to
a very grave dilemma — namely, that the sentence
of the law would have been carried out, but for
the circumstance that there was no apparatus
ready at Monmouth for the performance of these
tragedies, as no execution had taken place for
many years at this place.

FROM DIARY.

February 8. — Eiding through the Horse-Guards
to-day I saw a great crowd waiting the arrival
of Prince Albert, but H.R.H. (for so he is, and
a Field-Marshal) went over Vauxhall Bridge,
straight to Buckingham Palace. It is said H.M.
saluted him, on receiving him, and went down
the hall steps to meet him. He was accompanied
by his father and brother.

FROM BOOK, " RECOLLECTIONS.'*

I went to the Chapel Royal, St. James's,
to attend the Queen's marriage. The Cabinet

246 LONDON CHAP. VI.

1840. Ministers had places assigned to them and their
families at the end of the West Gallery. I was
put over the altar, and had an opportunity of
observing every movement of all principally con-
cerned in the ceremony. The description given
in the newspapers was sufficiently accurate ; and,
as I saw Hayter, in the corner to the left of the
altar, occupied with his pencil, I felt sure that
the ceremony would be faithfully represented.
The Queen-Dowager took her seat first, and then
Prince Albert arrived. I had never seen him so
near me before. I was greatly pleased with his
appearance. Indeed, I should say that he looked
very handsome; and the ladies, best judges in
such matters, pronounced him to be a very hand-
some man. Indeed, a lady of my acquaintance
said she considered our Queen to have made a
very fortunate choice, and she was much to be
envied. He was a little embarrassed with his
gloves and his Prayer-book, and seemed not to
know whether he ought to bow to the Archbishop
of Canterbury and the Bishop of London, or the
altar. Queen Adelaide talked a good deal to him,
and seemed to be telling him what to do during
the service; so, also, did the Duke, his father,
a fine-looking man.

There was an interval of twenty minutes
between the appearance of the Prince and the
entrance of the Queen. Her Majesty's approach
was announced by the band playing " God save
the Queen," and a flourish of trumpets, heard

CHAP. VI. THE QUEEN 's MARRIAGE 247

first at some little distance, and producing rather 1840
a theatrical effect. The Queen walked slowly to
the altar, and knelt for a short time; then rose
and pulled off her gloves and gave them to one
of her ladies. She then opened her Prayer-book,
and the Archbishop of Canterbury began the
service. H.M. looked handsome, but pale, and
the orange-blossoms in her head shook violently.
But she performed her part with her usual pro-
priety and presence of mind, and prompted Prince
Albert during the reading of the lessons more
than once. She once beckoned to him to approach
nearer when he put the ring on her finger, and
pointed to the finger on which the ring was to
be put. She pronounced the responses in a clear,
steady voice, and repeated, " I, Victoria, wed
thee, Albert," in a tone of deep, calm feeling,
which I shall never forget. The Prince also
repeated his lesson well, but with more emotion
than the Queen. There was a dead silence within
the Chapel ; but the voices and wrangling of
the multitude outside the Chapel-windows might
be distinctly heard. The whole service was per-
formed, and was a good deal longer than usual.
Two anthems were sung. At the close of the
ceremony the Queen kissed the Royal Dukes,
and Princesses, and also Queen Adelaide, most
affectionately ; and I remarked that she called
the Princess Mary of Cambridge to her and kissed
her. Just before she retired she turned round
to Lord Melbourne, who held the sword of state,

248 LONDON CHAP. VI.

1840. and smiled playfully. There was something
affecting in the scene ; but I saw only two persons
in tears — one was the Duchess of Somerset and
the other my friend Morpeth. The Queen and
Prince walked down the Chapel hand in hand,
and even then I remarked that Her Majesty was
obliged to prompt Prince Albert. H.R.H. seemed
afraid of being too conspicuous; and there was
an apparent shyness in his manner which he
never, so far as I observed, entirely got rid of
when in presence of the Queen.

I saw the Royal couple in their travelling
carriage afterwards, in the Park, on their way
to Windsor. This was about four o'clock. There
was a dense crowd on both sides of the road, and
a good many carriages and horsemen were drawn
up to see them pass. The acclamations and
waving of handkerchiefs were incessant. The
carriage went very slowly, and the Queen bowed
to the people repeatedly. Their reception was
most enthusiastic ; yet a Tory lady told my friend
Lady Howick that the Queen was not cheered at
all. The newspapers said that the same reception
was given to them all the way to Windsor. The
glasses of the carriage were down, and several
persons on horseback rode close to the carriage
to look at her. The Prince sat opposite to Her
Majesty.

All London seemed in movement. The weather
improved as the day advanced, and the streets were
crowded in every direction. The illuminations

CHAP. VI. COMMERCIAL TREATY WITH FRANCE 219

in the evening were more than usually splendid, 1840.
and the crowd increased ; but I heard of no riots,
nor any impropriety, excepting some ballads, un-
suitable, or, rather, too suitable for the occasion.

I had a small party to dine with me— the Hope
Veres, the Methuens, and F. Mildmay. The
A\ <>dding-cake which Her Majesty had sent to me
was in the middle of the table ; my children came
down to dessert, and all of us drank the health
of the Queen and the Prince. I doubt whether
any in the land were more sincere in their good
wishes than my little party. I did not go to
the Duchess of Sutherland's dress-party, being
tired, and unwilling to put on my fine clothes
again. So ended this day.

FROM DIARY.

February 14.— This day Lord Hill called on me,
and told me the Duke of Wellington had had
another paralytic seizure !

February 15. — Cabinet. Labouchere read to us
a proposal for Commercial Treaty with France,
which is more liberal than any yet offered, but
which annexes a condition that will prevent
the arrangement, viz. free exportation of our
machinery, to which our great manufacturing
parties will never consent.

I dined at Mr. Speaker's, who has had two fine
rooms built for him in Eaton Square, and has
renewed the Court Dress fashion. I sat next to
friend Ellice, and the evening passed off pleasantly.

VOL. v 32

250 LONDON CHAP. VI.

1840. February 16.— Dined in Park Street. Met Sir
Harry Mildmay, whom I had not seen for more
than twenty years, and scarcely recognised the gay
and handsome Lothario whose follies made so much
noise in my younger days. He is now fat and
overgrown, with no pretensions to good looks ; but
he is lively and talkative, and, having seen a good
deal of the best society in Italy — Milan princi-
pally— has many agreeable stories to tell.

He told me that he left Lord Hartford the
other day in Italy, and that his lordship said
he might depend upon it Lord Melbourne was,
at his present time of speaking, out of office, and
Parliament dissolved; so sure were the Con-
servatives of turning us out at the beginning of
this Session.

FROM BOOK, " RECOLLECTIONS."

On February 19 I went to Court, and saw Her
Majesty for the first time since her marriage.
She seemed in good spirits. Prince Albert was
on her left hand, and bowed, with graceful civility,
to all who passed him. The Court was exceed-
ingly full, and a great many congratulatory
addresses were presented. Sir Walter James pre-
sented one from Hull, signed by 700 Conservative
electors, congratulating H.M. on having married
a Protestant Prince. The Queen received this
insolent hint with a good-humoured smile. I re-
marked that, although she was distant with some
of the more violent of our opponents, she was very

CHAP. vi. PEEL'S ATTACK ON PALMERSTON 251

civil to Lord Stanley, and showed that preference 1840.
which, I understand, has continued now for so
many years, under a great variety of circumstances.
On February 21 we occupied the greater
part of the sitting with our Army Estimates.
The debate ended with an attack by Peel on
Palmerston's foreign policy. His principal objec-
tions were — that Palmerston had not forced the
Portuguese to abandon the slave-trade ; also that
Palmerston had not forced the Spaniards to allow
a Protestant chapel to be built at the Havannah ;
also that he, Palmerston, had allowed the French
to rent the islet in front of Port Mahon ; and,
lastly, for irritating the French Government, by
allowing our newspaper — meaning, I suppose, the
Morning Chronicle— to attack the French Govern-
ment. Of all the attacks made by Sir Robert
Peel on Lord Palmerston— and, in those days, they
were many — I thought this the most ill-judging ;
and nothing could be more successful than
Palmerston's answer, and I was sure that Peel
thought so, for his rejoinder was very poor and
ineffectual.

The next day I dined at Buckingham Palace.
The only Minister present, except myself, was
Lord Melbourne. There were only a few guests,
and they, excepting Lord and Lady Ashley, were
persons composing the suite of Prince Albert's
father. The Prince and Queen came into the
room together. He sat on the left hand of Her
Majesty ; Lord Melbourne was on her right hand.

252 LONDON CHAP. VI.

1840. The Duchess of Kent was ill, and did not appear ;
but her suite were there.

I handed in one of the Paget family, a
beautiful, yellow-haired girl, and sat next to her
at dinner. H.M. seemed in good spirits, and
talked a good deal with her immediate neigh-
bours. -After dinner, we drank not only the
health of the Queen, as usual, but also that of
Prince Albert, the Queen standing up and smiling
towards him. The ladies and gentlemen of the
party retired at the same time ; but we stayed a
short time in the ante-room.

When we came into the drawing-room Lord
Melbourne introduced me to Prince Albert, and
the Prince, Lord Melbourne, and myself had some
conversation on the late campaigns in Afghanistan.
The Prince made some sensible remarks, showing
he had paid more attention than was currently
believed to such subjects. Lord Melbourne talked
to him with a polite freedom, natural to him, and
agreeable to all associates of whatever rank, with-
out stiffness, without undue formality. I have
never seen any one quite equal, or, indeed, ap-
proaching to him in his intercourse with all
classes.

After tea the Prince and Queen sat on the sofa,
and Lord Melbourne in his usual arm-chair. The
Queen and Prince played at some game called, as
I heard, German Tactics ; but afterwards H.M.
turned round and conversed with Lord Melbourne,
and with me, on several subjects.

CHAP. VI. DEBATE ON CAPITAL PUNISHMENT 253

Amongst them were two or three connected 1840.
with my own department. H.M. told me she
had tried the Assam tea, of which I had sent
her a specimen. H.M. said that she liked it,
but had been told it was of inferior quality.
I asked her who had told her so. "Why,"
replied the Queen, "it was Lord Melbourne."
I defended my teas, and then we talked of the
Indian army, and recent successes. Lord Mel-
bourne observed that we should never stop until
we got to Teheran. I laughed, and said that
some of our Indian friends would be glad to
make Her Majesty Queen of Persia; but that
her Empire was large enough already. Lord
Melbourne said that the inevitable tendency of
such empires was to expand. I quoted Mr.
Canning's saying on this subject, viz. " the irre-
pressible tendency to expansion." The Queen
listened to the talk with complacency, but made
no remark. She then turned to the Prince, who
was playing cards with Lady Uxbridge, and over-
looked his game. I never saw a more interesting
couple than the Prince and Queen, in any rank
of life, nor more propriety of demeanour, under
circumstances of no little embarrassment. The
Queen retired, and the party broke up at half-
past eleven.

On March 5 I heard part of a debate about
abolishing the punishment of death. I did not
vote, having my doubts, which I still entertain
(1866), on that question.

254s LONDON CHAP. VI.

1840. PROM DIARY.

March 7. — I dined at home, and had my little
girls with me afterwards. They sang and acted
an opera composed impromptu, chiefly by my
second daughter, and I must say her precocity
in that line astonished and rather alarmed me.

PROM BOOK, "RECOLLECTIONS."

On March 11 a great dinner was given at
Drury Lane Theatre, to celehrate the fiftieth year
of Mr. Byng's representation of Middlesex. I
did not attend, but I sent £5 subscription for
the piece of plate that was presented to him on
that occasion. Few persons have passed a long
public life with a reputation so unscathed as that
of Mr. Byng.

On March 15, dining with the Lord Chancellor,
I was, by Lord Lansdowne, introduced to Mons.
Guizot. The first impression produced by this
celebrated Frenchman was not over-favourable.
He was a small, rather insignificant, buttoned-up,
black-stock sort of personage — like a French
Abbe* ; but he seemed lively, and willing to be
pleased. He told me he had never before been
out of France.

On March 18 I dined at the Albion Tavern
with the Court of Directors, who entertained
General Whittingham on his departure as Com-
mander-in- Chief at Madras. General Alava was
of the party. He had known Whittingham in
Spain, and spoke to me highly of him; so did

CHAP. VI. GUIZOT AND O'CONNELL 255

Lord Hill. He was an elderly, weatherbeaten 1840.
gentleman, in a black wig. I was kindly received
at this dinner, and made, I was told, a good speech
on returning thanks for my health; but I owed
this to Guznee and Kelat.

March 19. — I went to a party at Lansdowne
House, where I saw for the first time the
Mrs. Austen. A fine eye, and a striking-looking
woman, but very large.

On April 4 I dined with Stanley, our Secretary,
and met Guizot, Lord John Russell, young Ellice
and his wife, Austin the barrister, Lord Dun-
cannon, and Daniel O'Connell. Guizot told me
he had the greatest anxiety to meet O'Connell,
and, during dinner, he listened and looked at him
with much attention. We had a very agreeable
day. O'Connell talked well and quietly, and
spoke dispassionately of the Catholic religion. He
gave us an interesting account of the Benedictine
establishments in Ireland, their wealth and general
respectability. Guizot spoke English well. Austin
told me that he looked at him with pride, as the
triumph of learning and literature over aristocratic
prejudices. I looked upon Guizot, O'Connell, and
Russell to be three of the most remarkable men
of our time.

FROM DIARY.

April 5. — I dined with a large party at Lord
Palmerston's. It consisted chiefly of Foreign
Ministers and their wives. In addition to these

256 LONDON CHAP. VI.

1840. were Lord and Lady Clarendon. I sat next to
the latter, who, after we had talked some time,
asked me who I was ; and, when I told her, added,
very civilly, that she had requested to be intro-
duced to me at Mr. Stanley's, but I had then
left the room.

This little compliment gave me the courage to
try to please her, and I lost some of that mauvaise
honte which generally depresses me in society.
After dinner I had some talk with Madame de B.,
who told me she had seen Madame Guiccioli in
London, and thought her still handsome.

PROM BOOK, " RECOLLECTIONS."

At the House of Commons, on April 7, I heard
Graham make his opening speech against the
Government, in regard to their Chinese policy.
He said little or nothing of the war or of the
opium trade ; but his principal charge was our
having left Captain Elliot without due powers
and instructions.1 As to powers, I thought Elliot
had all he could want ; in regard to instructions,
perhaps Palmerston's letters were not sufficiently
full and definite. Macaulay answered Graham in
a very eloquent and argumentative harangue.
Pollett deprecated war with the Chinese as in-

1 Sir James Graham's motion was to the effect that the rupture of
friendly relations with China, and the hostilities which had taken
place, were entirely due to the neglect of the Government, who had
disregarded all warnings and had not given proper support to Captain
Elliot. The debate began on April 7, and the motion was lost on
the 10th by 271 to 261.

CHAP. VI. DEBATE ON CHINA QUESTION 257

glorious. Sir George Staunton complained of the 1840.
motion as containing nothing declaratory of the
character of the war and of the opium trade. He
spoke feebly, but his long residence in China
gave him weight.

Gladstone, speaking on the same question, made
a frantic declamation against opium-smuggling,
and actually went the length of saying, "Of course
they poisoned the wells." This raised a yell of
abhorrence from us, and Graham, Peel, and Stanley
hung their heads.

I made a long speech of two hours, the first part

of which was very effective; but, when I began

to argue and go into details, and quote from the

Blue Book, I did not keep the House quiet.

Palmerston concluded the debate and made a very

effective party speech, defending himself valiantly

and attacking the accusers vigorously. He did not

argue much, and the little he did in that way was

but a repetition of what I had just said. He was

so gallant and confident, and claimed the support

of all on our side with so much gay assurance,

that he completely succeeded in his appeal, and

sat down amidst thunders of applause, which

lasted some time. We divided 271 to 261. The

Conservatives cheered a good deal, and our friends

joined them. The truth was, we were fortunate

in being able to keep our party together on this

occasion.

The next morning I found a letter from my
acquaintance of many years, Sir George Staunton.

VOL. v 33

258 LONDON CHAP. VI.

1840. It began "Sir," and complained of my having
" used a freedom with his name " ; and saying
that, although I could not have meant any personal
offence, he must request me not to repeat the
expression. Strange man !

I had called him " My excellent and innocent
friend," and said that he had been so long in
China he did not know the wicked ways of the
political world, otherwise he would have been
aware that Graham had formed his motion in
ambiguous terms, only to catch votes. I wrote a
note to him in very friendly terms, assuring him
that " he was the last man to whom I would
willingly give offence, and, if I had inadvertently
done so, I was heartily sorry for it."

I heard that the phrase which offended him was
that " I should like to know on what hill he had
been keeping his sheep " — a foolish pleasantry, no
doubt, but not requiring such a remonstrance. I
took an early opportunity of saying something
handsome in another debate, and we were as good
friends as before, and continued to be so until the
end of his days.

On April 11 I went to the opera after dinner,
and sat opposite to the Queen and Prince Albert,
who seemed much pleased with the dancing of
Fanny Elsler, in the Tarantella.

Dining at the Palace on April 13, I had the
good fortune to sit next to Miss Anson, a very
agreeable lady. After dinner, in the drawing-
room, H.M. spoke to me a good deal about the

CHAP. VI. PRINCE ALBERT — LORD MELBOURNE 259

long debate on China, and then told me of 1840.
her holiday visit to Windsor ; amongst other
things she told me she had seen me the other
evening at the opera, and asked me who the
ladies were that were with me.

Prince Albert then came to me, and talked on
similar topics, giving an account of his drives with
the Queen and the civility with which he was
treated by every one. There was a softness and
modesty in his manners which were very attractive.
Our opponents were spreading the most absurd
rumours about the severity of the Queen's
dominion over him. Whilst I was playing whist
with the Duchess of Kent, Lord Palmerston and
Prince Albert, and his brother Prince Ernest and
a fourth person, played at double chess, a game
I never saw before, and, by the way, have never
seen since.

When H.M. left the room I had some talk with
Lord Melbourne, and, on my remarking that
" Sir Robert Peel had more than once signified
his readiness to take the Government " — "True,"
remarked Lord Melbourne, "and I had resolved
to notice it ; but I had forgotten it. I shall, how-
ever, do it." I was seldom alone with Lord
Melbourne without his speaking to me about my
department; and, on the previous Saturday, he
took me aside at the Cabinet and said, " Although
the odds are ten to one we shall not be in office
next year, we ought to provide for contingencies
as much as if we were to remain there for

260 LONDON CHAP. VI.

1840. our lives. Now I hear that Auckland is pre-
paring to leave India next February. " I told
Lord Melbourne that it was highly desirable
Auckland should remain in India, and I pro-
mised to take the steps necessary to secure that
object.

CHAPTER VII

FROM BOOK, " RECOLLECTIONS." 1840.

Dining at Holland House on April 16, I
met Mr. De Neumann (the Austrian Minister),
Baron Bulow, Mr. Dedel, Rogers, Litton, Mr.
Dundas (the new Member for Sutherland), Lord
Palmerston, and a Mr. Williams, whom I did
not know. We passed an agreeable evening,
and had some talk which was not, in those
days, often heard at the tables of our fashion-
able folk.

Lord Holland himself started two or three
questions, to which no one gave satisfactory
answers — e.g. who was Ragotski ? Neumann
said he was a Hungarian; Bulow said he was a
Frenchman, who conspired against the Emperor
of Germany. Here we all stopped; even Mr.
Allen knew nothing more. Lord Holland talked
of the Homeric moly,1 and asked me what it was.
I said it was a herb. Lord Holland would not
admit this; he said it was mentioned in the
" Odyssey," and alluded to by Milton in " Comus,"
but nothing was said of its being a herb. When

1 M«Xu, a herb of magic power given by Hermes to Ulysses as a
counter-charm to the attractions of Circe.— Odyssey, x. 30o.

201

262 LONDON CHAP. VII.

1840. we went into the library, we looked for R/agotski,1
and found his story not very unlike that of
Ripperda,2 except that he was not a good-for-
nothing fellow. I found I was right about moly.
Homer calls it avOos. Lord H. was thinking,
as he confessed, of " nepenthe." This mistake
was the more strange inasmuch as Lord H. told
me he had copied the " Odyssey " twice with his
own hand.

Lady Holland asked what " mandrake " was.
Mr. Neumann said it was not the same as mandra-
gora ; M. Guizot, who had joined us, said it was
the same, and added that Machiavelli's comedy
of The Mandragola was founded on the fable.
Lady Holland said : " Ask Mr. E/ogers ; he can
tell us." Accordingly, I did ask him, but he did
not know. We turned to Johnson's Dictionary,
and found Guizot was right. Shakespeare had
settled it ; now all of us ought to have known
this. I mentioned this to a great friend of mine—

1 Francis Leopold Ragotski was born in 1676, and educated at the
Court of Vienna. Failing in later years to recover his propeity,
which had been taken from him, he became a malcontent, and was
imprisoned at Neustadt. He escaped, and rose to be leader of the
Hungarian opposition, in which capacity he kept Hungary separate
from Austria for ten years. He was proscribed in 1711, and spent
the rest of his life in England and Turkey.

8 John William Ripperda, an adventurer, was born at Groningen,
and became Dutch Ambassador to Spain. Philip V. created him a
Duke, and made him his Foreign Minister ; but, having incurred the
hatred of the Spanish nobles, he was imprisoned at Segovia in 1726.
He escaped in 1728, and, after wandering over Europe, took service
under the Emperor of Morocco and commanded his forces against
Spain. He was defeated at Ceuta, and banished from Morocco.
He died at Tetuan in 1737.

CHAP. VII. THE OPIUM QUESTION 263

a lady, and found she knew it ; and she told me, 1840.
moreover, that the " mandrake " was the common
plant called " lords and ladies."

On April 19 I went to church with my children,
and heard a sermon on the Resurrection of our
Saviour. Walking away with my friend, Sir John
Macdonald, Adjutant-General, he remarked that
" the preacher had brought his batteries very well
to bear on the point."

I dined, April 29, at a Cabinet dinner at Lord
Clarendon's. We had little official talk until we
went upstairs, when Lord Melbourne desired me
to inform our friends what the East India Com-
pany intended to do in regard to the opium
monopoly. It was settled the answer should be :
" Discussions were still going on between the
home authorities, and that the Governor-General
of India was considering the subject." Lord
Melbourne might add that if the opium monopoly
were abandoned to-morrow, the poppy would still
be cultivated, even in our own possessions ; and
if not there, certainly in Malwa, and as much as,
if not more than now, might be produced. We
had not much more talk.

May 1. — At House of Commons, where I pre-
sented a petition against using children for
sweeping chimneys.

At our next Cabinet Baring gave us a very
unsatisfactory account of the state of the finances,
and concluded by stating that the deficiency of
next year would amount to three millions. This

264 LONDON CHAP. VII.

1840. he proposed to make good by a loan. Lord John
stopped him, and said that a preliminary question
ought to be raised — namely, whether this deficiency
could not be supplied better by fresh taxes. Lord
Melbourne rather inclined to this in preference
to a loan ; but nothing was settled in regard to
this important matter.

I went to the Water-colour Exhibition, and
bought Mr. Prout's picture of "A Street in
Prague." I gave forty guineas for it — very
cheap, and worth now (1866) at least three times
as much.

On May 5 I met Lord William Russell coming
out of B rooks 's, and had some conversation with
him. The next day I heard that he had been
found dead in his house in Norfolk Street, with
his throat cut and a napkin thrown over his face.
An inquest sat on the body at six o'clock, and
returned a verdict of wilful murder by person
or persons unknown. Some persons had been
charitable enough to hint suspicions of suicide,
for which there was not the slightest ground.
The day after, suspicion attached to Lord William's
Swiss valet, a man of the name of Courvoisier.
The sons of my medical attendant, Mr. Elsgood,
who saw the body just after it was discovered,
and who were examined at the inquest, told their
father that they had no doubt of this fact.

At the Cabinet on May 9 we had a discussion
on the opium question ; and, to my surprise, both
Labouchere and Macaulay, upon my saying that I

CHAP. vii. NAPOLEON'S REMAINS 265

thought the immediate abolition of the monopoly 1840
inexpedient, pronounced an opinion directly against
monopoly ; and Lord Holland, who knew nothing
about the matter, and Lord Lansdowne, who knew
very little, advised that Lord Melbourne should
say the Government were devising the best means
of discouraging the growth of the poppy and the
manufacture of opium. I begged that nothing of
the kind might be said, and it was finally agreed
that Lord Melbourne should say we were giving
our best attention to the subject.

Lord Palmerston now stated that a proposal had
been made by Mons. Thiers and the French
Government, through Mons. Guizot, for permitting
the removal of the remains of Napoleon from St.
Helena. It was proposed that a Erench frigate,
with an English commissioner on board, should
proceed to St. Helena and effect the removal.
H.M.'s pleasure had, we heard, been previously
taken, and the Cabinet consented unanimously to
the proposal. Most of us seemed to think that
Thiers had hit upon a very politic expedient. But
Lord Melbourne said he was not quite sure of that ;
at any rate foreign States, and more especially
Austria, would be highly incensed. One of us
asked whether the consent of the Allies, who had
agreed to sending Napoleon to St. Helena, was
necessary before removing his remains. We did
not sit long, as Lord John Russell was not
present.

Lord Normanby told us that, from all he had
VOL. v 34

266 LONDON CHAP. VII.

1840. heard, there could be no doubt that the mur-
derer of Lord William Russell was the Swiss
valet. Macaulay repeated some lines of a ballad,
which he had heard in the street, about the
murder ; and some of us could not help laughing ;
others looked astonished at this strange want of
decorum, and Baring, taking me to the window,
whispered, " What an odd fellow ! "

FKOM DIARY.

May 13. — The China question came on to-day in
the Lords. The Duke of Wellington made a most
gallant and effective defence of Elliot's conduct at
Canton, and broadly asserted that the war was not
an opium war, and that he, as one who had been
in the public service for fifty years, would spill the
last drop of his blood rather than permit that a
British functionary should be treated as Elliot
had been — like the meanest criminal.

Poor Lord Stanhope eventually withdrew his
motion.

The Opposition papers knew not how, at first, to
notice the exposure of the conduct of their House
of Commons heroes, but a day or two afterwards
the Times sneered at the Duke for throwing his
broad shield over the helpless Ministry and turn-
ing his back on his friends.

We had a Cabinet, and, amongst other things, had
some conversation on Mr. Kelly's motion to abolish
Capital Punishment, except for murder and High
Treason, a disagreeable subject for Lord John,

CHAP. VII. ANTI-SLAVERY MEETING 267

who, however, treated it very calmly and said he 1840.
should request Mr. Kelly to put off his motion for
a short time. He looks very much worn and
affected by the death of his uncle.

At the Cabinet on May 16 I asked Lord
Palmerston whether it was true that he had written
the letter quoted by M. de Re*musat, in the debate
in the Chamber of Deputies, on the transfer of the
remains of Napoleon to France. Palmerston was
represented to have said that he trusted " if any
animosity still existed between the two nations, it
might be buried in the tomb which France would
raise to the Emperor.'* Palmerston told me he had
expressed that hope ; " for," said he, " I recollected
what Lord Holland had said on this removal, * If
it is to be done, let it be done handsomely.' '

Lord Palmerston told me that the Prince de
Joinville was to go for the remains, and that the
Chamber of Deputies had voted a million of francs
for the expenses of the expedition, as also a tomb
and funeral ceremony at the Invalides. All the
votes were carried by acclamation.

June 1. — This day Prince Albert took the chair
at the Anti-Slavery Meeting at Exeter Hall. I
was asked to assist H.R.H., but on Lord Mel-
bourne's advice and my own inclination, declined
going. I heard afterwards that Peel was there
and moved thanks to the Prince in a laboured and
fulsome speech, and that O'Connell met with a
very rude reception. The principal speakers were
Conservative, and the whole meeting was evidently

268 LONDON CHAP. VII.

1840. got up to impress the Prince with the unpopularity
of our party. Russell remarked to me that the
Prince would rather that Peel had not cut off
£20,000 a year from his income than that he
should subscribe £100 to this Society, and make
his fine speech.

PROM BOOK, " RECOLLECTIONS."

On Wednesday, June 3, the Derby was run for,
and won by what was called a dark horse, named
Little Wonder. The Queen was on the course,
and the Morning Post said, " H.M. was rapturously
received, because Lord Melbourne was not with
her."

In the evening I had some friends to dine with
me, and amongst them, Ardaseer, the Parsee
shipbuilder from Bombay, who had come to
England to instruct himself in our dockyards.
I had asked him to dinner; but he told me he
was forbidden to eat meat with us ; he might
take tea.

On Monday, June 8, I dined at the Palace,
with a small party. I sat next to Baroness
Lehzen, who gave me a most interesting account
of Her Majesty's education, and her literary
tastes. H.M. did not admire Dr. Johnson's
writing till she read " Rasselas." She disliked
Swift. She was not fond of novels and romances ;
excepting " Ivanhoe," she did not much like Sir
Walter Scott. History she was very fond of ; but
not very ancient history, such as Rollin, for ex-

CHAP. vii. OXFORD'S ATTACK ON THE QUEEN 269

ample, "which," she said, "probably was not 1840.
true." H.M. had read the Old Testament through
three or four times; of modern poetry she had
read very little, such as selections from Byron and
Walter Scott.

The Baroness talked to me of the strong sense
and judgment of the Queen, and of her conduct
in the reign of the late King. Her manners in
company were most simple and unobtrusive ; and
when it was represented to her, by Madame
Lehzen herself, that she ought to act more like
the heir-presumptive to the throne, " No," said
she, " there is no saying what may happen ; I may
be what I am all my life. It is better to make
a mistake on that side than on the other." H.M.,
Madame Lehzen said, was kindly treated by
King William ! but she knew she was not liked
at his Court, and she kept as much out of the
way as she could. Her conduct at her acces-
sion was admirable, marked by firmness and
decorum.

I was riding in Hyde Park, near Cumberland
Gate, a little before seven, on Wednesday, June 10,
when I met the Queen and Prince Albert in their
pony-phaeton. Just afterwards I met Charles
Howard, Lord Melbourne's private secretary, who
said to me, " I suppose you know what has
happened ? " I replied, " Not I, indeed." " The
Queen has been shot at twice." I replied, " That
cannot be ; I have just seen her in the Park ; and
she is there now, driving." "Is she?" said

270 LONDON CHAP. VII.

1840. Howard ; " I wish you would call on Lord Mel-
bourne, and tell him so." Accordingly, I went to
South Street, and, calling on Lord Melbourne, told
one of his servants ; and he told me the same story.
I asked him whether he was quite sure that it was
the Queen, and not the Queen-Dowager? He
said " He was quite certain it was the Queen."
I was horror-struck, and much affected ; so young
— so innocent — so good — so confiding, in her
present situation, her young husband by her side.
I blamed myself for not having advanced to the
carriage, and seen that she was safe ; but I knew
nothing of the attempt. Indeed, it never entered
into my head that a villainy so monstrous was
possible.

I went to a Cabinet dinner at Holland House ;
the only other Ministers were, besides our host,
Lord Lansdowne and Lord Minto. I expected to
hear of nothing but the assassination, but such
are the conventional affectations of society that
neither of them said a word on the subject, until
I ventured to remark that it was very strange
any one should think of such a thing ; then one of
my colleagues said, " Yes, very strange."

Lord John Russell came in, and told us he had
seen the police carrying off the assassin. Then
came Duncannon, who told us he had been to the
Palace to inquire of the last account, and found
that the assassin had been taken to the Queen
Square station-house ; had surrendered himself
quietly, saying he was the man. He was

CHAP. vir. OXFORD'S ATTACK ON THE QUEEN 271

a lad of eighteen. Palmerston now came in ; he 1840.
had heard nothing of the matter.

Lord Melbourne and Normanby came in. They
had both seen the Queen— not at all flurried or
alarmed ! H.M. had told them that, when she
saw the assassin take a deliberate aim at her, with
his second pistol, the sight was far from agreeable.
Prince Albert rose, but sat down again. The
carriage drove on with the Queen, who called
immediately on the Duchess of Kent. Afterwards
H.M. drove twice round the Park, a crowd of
ladies and gentlemen following her, waving their
hats and handkerchiefs. The culprit's name was
Edward Oxford.

After hearing these particulars we considered
what was to be done. Lords Lansdowne and
Holland seemed to think that, unless there was
reason to believe some conspiracy existed, the
proceedings should be conducted in the ordinary
way. I protested against this, and said that
an attempt against the life of the Sovereign,
conspiracy or not, should be dealt with in
another manner, and that the examination should
take place before the Privy Council. The Lord
Chancellor said he thought so too, and it was
finally arranged that the man should be examined
by the magistrates at the Home Office in the first
instance, and afterwards by the Privy Council.

On Thursday I attended a Council at the Home
Office, where we decided only Cabinet Ministers
should be present.

272 LONDON CHAP. VII.

1840. Oxford himself was brought in. He was young,
and under the middle size, neatly made, with a
darkish olive complexion. He had black eyes
and eyebrows, dark chestnut hair. He had not
a bad expression, but with a curl on his lips,
as if suppressing a smile or sneer. He was
dressed as became his condition, which, we were
told, was that of a barman at a pothouse. There
was nothing displeasing in his look or manner,
until he spoke, when his pert audacity and his
insolent carelessness gave him the air of a
ruffian.

The prisoner cross-examined the witnesses with
the most disgusting flippancy. He did not deny
firing at the carriage, but only tried to confuse
the witnesses about distances and position, and
how he held the pistols, and in which hand.

The only sign of feeling he gave was when his
brother-in-law was examined. He then turned
his back and hung down his head, declining
also to cross-examine him ; nor would he cross-
examine the policeman who broke open his
box. He seemed to me to wish to have it
thought he had fired at the Prince and not at
the Queen.

Lord Normanby shortly afterwards made out
and signed the warrant to the keeper of Newgate,
committing Oxford to prison for high treason ;
and at half-past five he was conveyed in a cab-
riolet to Newgate.

On June 12 I went to the Palace with the

CHAP. VII. ADDRESSES TO THE QUEEN 273

Address to the Queen from the Lords and 1840.
Commons. There was a great crowd both of
Lords and Commons, and the rush into the
Throne-room, through the doorway, was tremen-
dous. I had much ado to prevent myself heing
pushed over the Duke of Wellington. The Queen
appeared much affected; when she read her answer
her voice faltered and her hand trembled. Prince
Albert stood at her left hand, and he also seemed
affected by the ceremony.

Whilst in the crowd I had a conversation
with Sir James Graham and Lord Grey, both
of whom deprecated the alteration in the penal
code, which diminished the number of crimes
punished capitally, and made no distinction be-
tween a murderer and any other felon capitally
convicted.

Lord Stanley and I happening to be next to
one another, he remarked to me that O'Connell
was present ; moreover, that he had a coat with
the Eepeal button upon it. I said that he always
wore that half uniform now.

FROM DIARY.

June 13. — I dined at Lansdowne House; a large
party to meet the Duke of Sussex and Duchess
of Inverness. I sat between Sir Hussey Vivian
and Lord Chancellor, the former not a wise, though
good, man. He told me he had been to look at
the mark in the wall on Constitution Hill, op-
posite to where the Queen was shot at, and was

VOL. v 35

274 LONDON CHAP. VII.

1840. quite sure it was made by a bullet. Whilst he
was looking at it he heard some one say, " General,
you and I know that is a bullet-mark," and
turning round, he saw an old soldier who had
served under him in Spain.

June 17. — Dined at my sister's, Mrs. Alexander.
Amongst others, met my old young friend, Miss
Coutts (Burdett), who has not been spoilt by her
vast wealth. I also had some conversation with
Lockhart on the Scottish Church Non-intrusion
Question.1 He said Chalmers was as great a
Jesuit as ever walked Spain, and that Cromwell
was the only man who knew how to deal with
the Scottish Presbyterians.

June 20. — I had a good deal of conversation
with M. Guizot on French affairs. He told me
that power in Prance was in the hands of middle
classes, but that there was not the slightest
chance of the Republican party ever having the
ascendant.

PROM BOOK, " RECOLLECTIONS."

On June 26 we were beaten on Lord Stanley's
Registration Bill. R. Gordon, one of our place-
men, was asleep in the Speaker's room. Two
others were shut out. Three of our best men

1 In 1834 the General Assembly of the Scottish Church resolved
that " It is a fundamental law of the Church that no pastor shall
be intruded on a congregation contrary to the will of the people."
This resolution was, however, proved to be illegal, and, after a long
and bitter struggle, it led to the disruption in 1843 when one- third
of the clergy, supporters of the Veto Act, left the Church, and
founded the Free Church of Scotland.

CHAP. VII. CANADA UNION BILL

were taken ill the same morning. In short, our 1840.
luck was villainously bad. Even Russell was
discomfited. He whispered to me "that it was
almost impossible to go on with so small a
majority " ; and he added " that we were eight
worse than we had been on the want-of-confidence
vote at the beginning of the session."

FROM DIARY.

June 30. — Our Canada Union Bill was read a
second time in the Lords, after most violent
speeches by the Duke of Wellington and Ellen-
borough, and a strong speech by Brougham.
Lords Lansdowne and Melbourne reproved them
in very able speeches, and certainly their conduct
was unjustifiable in every point of view, though
I have since heard that the Duke of Welling-
ton thought he was " keeping the peace " by
the line he took, for he told Lord Melbourne
so privately.

FROM BOOK, " RECOLLECTIONS."

On July 4 I dined at Lord Albemarle's, and
sat next to old General Grosvenor, who reminded
me of our having hunted at Melton together, six
or seven years ago. I told him it was sixteen
years ago.

On July 6 Courvoisier, the murderer of Lord
William Russell, was hanged. An immense
crowd witnessed the execution, and yelled and
hooted when the criminal was brought on the

276 LONDON CHAP. VII.

1840. scaffold. He made several confessions, and no
one seemed to know to which of them to give
credit.

I thought the defence set up for him hy Mr.
C. Phillips almost as atrocious as the crime itself.
It consisted in charging the crime upon a servant-
girl, who he knew was innocent, inasmuch as the
man himself had confessed his guilt to his advo-
cate. Most fortunately for the poor girl, the
silver spoons, which the murderer had taken from
his master, were discovered in possession of a
person who saw an advertisement about them, and
knew them by the Russell crest. This discovery
saved the girl, but did not cover the outrageous
conduct of the lawyer, and I never heard two
opinions on that score.

Lord John Russell told me that Lord Stanley
had given up his Canada Bill, with, as he said, a
flourish of trumpets to cover his retreat. He took
the same opportunity to give up our Registration
Bills ; also two or three other Bills of doubtful
parentage, which enabled Sir Robert Peel to con-
gratulate the House on getting rid of five Bills in
one night.

At our Cabinet, on July 8, Lord Palmerston
read to us a series of papers connected with the
Egyptian question, showing what had passed since
the collective note of July 1839. After reading
these papers, Palmerston told us that he should
propose a Convention between the four Powers
and the Sultan, promising aid to the latter

CHAP. VII. EGYPTIAN AFFAIRS 277

against Mahomet Ali. On this we had a long 1840.
discussion. Lord Holland and Lord Clarendon,
and two or three others, hesitated ahout assent-
ing to that which might involve us in a war.
Palmerston very honestly told us he did con-
template the employment of force, if other means
failed.

It was finally resolved that Palmerston should
communicate our assent to Brunnow, and should
propose, in concert with him, and Bulow, and
Neumann, and the Turkish Plenipotentiaries, to
frame a treaty in accordance with the proposals
made hy Russia, Austria, and Prussia. A most
important decision, which I considered to he
quite right in every point of view, and only
regretted that we had not adopted it eight months
"before.

The trial of Oxford, the assassin, hegan on
July 9. Our Attorney-General made a good
opening speech ; so did Mr. Sidney Taylor for the
defence. This consisted in the denial of the pistols
having been loaded with bullets ; and, if that was
proved, in an allegation of insanity. The verdict
of the jury was in accordance with this view —
that is, that the fact was proved, but that Oxford
AV;IS mad.

This evening a disagreeable discussion ensued at
the House of Commons, when Mr. Barrington
moved an Instruction extending out-of-door relief
on our Poor-Law Continuance Bill. Colonel
Sibthorp treated us to some of his usual imperti-

278 LONDON CHAP. VII.

1840. nence. Amongst other amenities he said he wished
Ministers had to live in the workhouse, or go to
the treadmill. I got home by one o'clock — rather
early in those days.

The next day Tom Duncombe brought on his
motion respecting the treatment of two men im-
prisoned for political offences. There was a great
deal of angry discussion, and our friends, being
relieved from fear of the ;Tories, assailed us in
good set phrase. Disraeli and one or two others
took the Tory-Radical line. Buller could not help
alluding to the different treatment of Sir Francis
Burdett and Sir John Hobhouse, when they were
imprisoned for political offences. I told Buller,
afterwards, that I had never been convicted by a
jury ; but sent to prison by a vote of the House
of Commons, without a hearing. He confessed
he knew nothing of my case, and should not have
alluded to it if I had not been a Baronet. I was
rather angry with him, and told him he had only
spoken, as usual, out of his abundant ignorance.
However, we made it up before the evening was
over.

At the Cabinet on July 11, many of us ex-
pressed regret at the acquittal of Oxford ; but the
Lord Chancellor said it had saved the Government
from much embarrassment, as it would have
been difficult to execute him. Lord Melbourne
said that he considered Oxford half-witted at his
examination before the Privy Council.

I had some talk, privately, with Lord John

CHAP. VII. LORD ABINGER's ANECDOTES 279

Russell on the subject. He agreed with me that 1840.
Oxford had been acquitted because Courvoisier
had been condemned ; and that, perhaps, the next
culprit would be convicted. Eor my own part,
I remarked that I should not be the least sur-
prised if some great catastrophe was caused by
this verdict.

This evening I dined at the London Tavern
with the East India Directors, at the entertain-
ment given by them to Lord Keane. There was
a great show of distinguished guests; besides Lord
Melbourne, Lansdowne, Normanby, Clarendon,
Abinger, Hill, and Seaton, Sir George Murray,
and a dozen other General Officers.

I sat next to Lord Abinger, who amused me
much by telling me anecdotes of some of his
celebrated contemporaries. He told me one of
Henry Dundas. Dundas was standing in the
Circle at Court. George III. eyed him very
earnestly, and continued looking at him for some
time. The next morning, his valet told him
a gentleman was waiting to see him. Dundas
answered that he could not see him just then,
he was in bed. " Sir," said the valet, "he says
he must see you — he comes from the King."
Dundas jumped out of bed, hurried on his clothes,
and ran downstairs. He saw a well-dressed man
in his parlour, and, with great civility, begged
to know what were His Majesty's commands ?
"Sir, I am sent by the King to you." Dundas
bowed very low — the man bowed lower. " I am

280 LONDON CHAP. VII.

1840. come," said he, "to tell you that His Majesty
observed you at the Levee yesterday " — Dundas
smiled, and bowed again — " and the King re-
marked what a handsome wig you had on. He
has ordered me, who am His Majesty's wig-maker,
to ask you who made it."

We had, of course, a good dinner, and much
speechifying. Lord Keane did tolerably well,
except that he told us his army had encountered
greater difficulties than that of Alexander the
Great, in the same countries. The Chairman
gave the health of Sir Henry Pottinger ; and a
handsome, dark-looking man, who told us he had
been thirty-seven years in India, returned thanks
briefly, but with so much feeling that I saw
Lord Melbourne was affected by it. I told
Lord Melbourne that this was the Pottinger
whom he had recommended to be made a Baronet
for his conduct in India. I was introduced
to Lushington, the late Governor of Madras.
Amongst other pleasant things, he said to me,
"Why do you not go out Governor-General to
India? It would be very acceptable to the
Court of Directors."— Q.E.D.

On July 12 I heard from the Duke of Bedford
that the Duke of Sussex intended to oppose our
Regency Bill, and that the King of Hanover
would join him in this opposition. The Duke
endeavoured to dissuade H.R.H. from taking this
course, but hitherto without effect.

The Queen's Message respecting the Eegency

CHAP. VII. POLITICAL SPIES 281

was delivered to both Houses the next day ; and, 1840.
in spite of threats, nothing \\a^ s;iid by the Duke
of Sussex, or anybody else, against it.

On July 37 we had a long debate on Mr.
Fielden's motion on political spies. Peel took
care to remind us that, in former days, we con-
demned the use of spies. Russell answered him
in an excellent speech, and showed the difference
between employing such men as Castles, Oliver,
and Edwards, and desiring public functionaries
to report on the state of the country. Sir James
Graham had got a volume of Hansard, and looked
hard at me and smiled. I supposed he was reading
my speech in 1820, against spies — the first I ever
made in Parliament.

FROM DIARY.

July 19. — I had the Hollands, Lord and Lady
Clanricarde, Lord and Lady Tankerville, Mr. and
Mrs. Van De Weyer, Lord Keane, Sir II . Pottinger,
Lord Andover, Edward Ellice, and several others
to dinner.

Lady Clanricarde told me her opinions very
frankly of society at St. Petersburg, not at all
a favourable one. She praised the Emperor, both
in respect to talents and disposition, but confessed
that he was a fanatic in his wish to make proselytes
to the Greek Church.

She told me that when Vicovitch shot him-
self he left a note on his table addressed to
one of the Czar's principal advisers, with these

VOL. v 36

282 LONDON CHAP. VII.

1840. words on it : " Come and contemplate your
work."

Poor Lord Keane rattled away, and, as he
speaks through his nose, disgusted Lady Holland
exceedingly. Sir H. Pottinger pleased everybody,
particularly Lord Holland, to whom he spoke in
favour of Mahomet Ali.

I had some conversation with Baron de Neumann
on our " Convention." He said he had never
known a diplomatic secret so well kept. Indeed,
even Ellice has only guessed at it, as a thing that
may he done. Neumann, talking of Russia, said,
" We are limitrophes with her, and there are
bounds to our friendship. Your Afghan ex-
pedition was well done, and produced good
effects." I have met Neumann often, but not
conversed with him before. He is reckoned a
clever man.

The party was agreeable, as Lady Holland told
me at parting ; taking care to add, however, that
Lady Tankerville and Ellice were not on speaking
terms.

FROM BOOK, " RECOLLECTIONS."

On July 20 Lord John Russell read a third
time, and passed his Ecclesiastical Titles and
Revenues Bill, after one or two divisions in which
he had large majorities. We gave him a cheer
when the Speaker said " That this Bill do pass."
Indeed, the patience and ability with which he
has brought to an end, as far as our House was

CHAP. VII. DINNER AT GUIZOT's 283

concerned, the labour of four years, was beyond 1840.
all praise.

On July 22 Lord Sandon made bis threatened
speech against Palmerston's commercial foreign
policy, and a very poor speech it was. Palmerston
answered with great spirit. Disraeli spoke, and
was not so impudent as usual. He took care,
however, to praise that Austrian alliance from
which we ought never to have departed, and to
which he was so much attached in the days of his
youth.

On July 26 I dined with a large party at
Monsieur Guizot's, to meet the Duke and Duchess
of Nemours. The only foreigners present, except
their Royal Highnesses, were Monsieur and
Madame Van De Weyer. Most of the Ministers
and their wives were there ; also the Duke and
Duchess of Beaufort. Earl Grey was present,
very solemn and sulky ; excepting shaking
Melbourne by the hand, he did not notice any of
the Ministers.

The Duke and Duchess of Nemours came late ;
she looked more beautiful than before her marriage,
with a superb figure, and a face rather childish,
with a luxuriant quantity of curling hair. A lady
who knew her well told me that she was very
dull, and the ladies of her suite had a hard time
of it. The Duke was brought round the circle by
Guizot. He addressed a few words to me about
my functions, both official and parliamentary,
and tried to be pleasing. The dinner was very

284 LONDON CHAP. VII.

1840. sumptuous, and, I thought, very good. It was
the composition of Monsieur Louis, Talleyrand's
famous cook. Guizot did the honours very civilly
and easily; I thought better than Soult and
Sebastiani.

In the drawing-room Guizot came to me and
began to talk of our Convention. He spoke
English. I requested him to speak French, and
allow me to speak in my own language. He then
spoke very volubly and earnestly in French. He
asked me what good we proposed to ourselves by
our Convention,1 and whether we should gain more
than by the French alliance. " Why," con-
tinued he, " should France and England quarrel
about a Pashalik more or less? Why run such
awful risks of a general war for a semi-barbarous
people ? " He added, " The circumstances are
very grave, I do assure you. I do not say there
is any intention on the part of the French Cabinet
to go to war ; but if a French frigate and an
English frigate were to meet on the coast of
Syria, and a collision took place, who would be
answerable for the consequences ? " I listened
very attentively, and only said, " I hoped no such
thing would occur." " Very well," said he, " but
why run the risk ? " I asked him how he got
rid of the Collective Note of July 1839 ? " C'etait

1 On July 15 the Convention was signed in London between the
Courts of Great Britain, Austria, Prussia, and Russia on the one
part, and the Ottoman Porte on the other, for the pacification of the
Levant. France stood aloof, but Mahomet AH declined to accept
the conditions applicable to himself, and war ensued.

711.

CHAP. VII. GLADSTONE ON CHINA QUESTION 285

une etourderie," replied he. " Besides/' added he, 1840.
" why should you make difficulties on that score
more than we ? we were parties to that Note as
well as yourselves." I could not help smiling
at this, as if want of faith on the part of France
could justify want of faith on the part of England;
but I only repeated my hope that the two nations
might continue on good terms, and I took my
leave. I may as well record that Guizot made
no complaint of the secret having been kept from
him, although that has been since made a grievance,
and complained of, and miscalled treachery and
deceit.

I was at the House of Commons on July 28,
when the vote of £150,000 for the China expedi-
tion was brought up, and Gladstone made his
promised speech on Chinese affairs. It was, as
I thought, fanatical, but not so much so as his
former exhibitions. He defended the Chinese, and
said that their conduct was not to be judged by
laws of European nations. Peel and Graham
walked away to the House of Lords, and left
Gladstone with no one but Lord Sandon on the
front benches to help him. I made as our friends,
and particularly Palmerston, told me, a good smart
speech. I treated Graham, personally, with
respect ; but ridiculed his law of nations, taking
care, of course, to quote the Duke of Wellington's
opinion of the conduct of the Chinese to Elliot.
Palmerston spoke, as usual, well ; but I thought
him too jocose for the occasion. He gave

286 LONDON — ERLE STOKE CHAP. VII.

1840. us some Hues from the Anti- Jacobin : " The
Consul quoted Wickefort, aud Puffendorf, and
Grotius." l

FROM DIARY.

August 4. — Travelling from Erie Stoke, where
I have been staying a few days, I met that very
well-known personage, Lord George Bentinck.
He was a most agreeable companion, and told me
several things about his racing establishment
which astonished me.

His stables and stakes in one year cost him
£9,000, his post-horses for running races £700
in one year; and he told me that, in order to
bring Crucifix up well to run for the Oaks, he
had made a course on purpose for her training,
which had cost him full £700; but he won £10,000
by the Oaks. I told him he deserved success.

He gave me an amusing account of the late
races at Goodwood, and said that the crowd
cheered when the Duke of Orleans's horse, Beggar-
man, won the cup; whereas at Paris, English
ladies were almost hustled in the street.

August 5. — I dined at the Palace. The party
was small ; Lord Melbourne was not there. H.M.
told me, laughing, that she had waited for him

1 THE ELEGY, OR DIRGE

The Consul quoted Wicquefort,
And Puffendorf, and Grotius ;

And proved from Vattel,

Exceedingly well,
Such a deed would be quite atrocious.

CHAP. VII. WILLIAM IV. AND QUEEN VICTORIA 287

some time ; but he had gone to dine with the 1840.
Duke and Duchess of Beaufort. I had a good
deal of talk with the Queen and Prince Albert
on indifferent matters. H.M. asked me the
particulars of the loss of the two ships wrecked
in the mouth of Bombay Harbour.

I sat by Madame Lehzen at dinner. She praised
the conduct of King William IV. to the Princess
Victoria, particularly in regard to not making
any efforts to force her to marry either of her
cousins. He one day said to the Princess, " My
dear child, marriage is a lottery.'* A common
saying, to be sure, but not to be expected from
a King to his niece and heir.

I went from the Palace to a party at Lady
Palmerston's, and had a long conversation with
Baron Bulow and my friend Brunnow. Brunnow
also introduced me to a very pretty person, Mile

, a very great favourite of the Empress,

" and," said B., " what is more, of the Emperor.
You see how poor Bulow is toadying her." The
lady was very agreeable ; and, amongst other
things, said, "You see what favourites the English
are ; we have parted with our most amiable men
for your sake." Before we parted Brunnow
talked to me a good deal, and, as usual, about
his own sincerity and straightforwardness.

FROM BOOK, " RECOLLECTIONS."

On this evening, Thursday, August 6, I heard
that Prince Louis Napoleon had landed in France,

288 LONDON CHAP. VII.

1840. with some fifty or sixty people, determined to
upset the Government. The story, though scarcely
credible, was true ! The man supped at Lady
Blessington's on Tuesday, and was seen riding
in Hyde Park on Wednesday morning. The same
evening he embarked on board the Edinburgh
steamer, with his followers, fifty-six in number,
eight horses and two carriages, two or three
barrels full of double Napoleons, and £200,000
worth of bank-notes about his person. He landed
at Wimereux, about a mile from Boulogne, at two
o'clock. At the time this seemed to me a mad
enterprise; but I have since learnt, on authority
which appears incontestable, that it was very
near being successful. In fact, if the plot had
not been betrayed, and one of the regiments in
garrison at Boulogne changed for another, the
whole of the troops would have revolted, and
joined the Prince.

On August 8 I dined at the Ministerial Fish-
dinner at Black wall. Russell told me, at table,
that he had called on the Duke of Wellington,
and asked him whether he thought we had soldiers
enough to repulse a sudden invasion of the French.
The Duke answered, " Yes, quite enough ! put
them in garrison. The French will be very shy
of attacking British soldiers in garrison ; but the
great thing is, you must have pretty nearly as
large, or more force than theirs, otherwise they
will be forced by national vanity to try to fight
you."

CHAP. VII. MINISTERIAL FISH-DINNER 289

I saw, by despatches from Lord Granville,
that King Louis Philippe represented the con-
duct of the French Government as inevitable
and unalterable ; and that the same policy
would be pursued, whoever was at the head
of it. He added that, if we sent a fleet to the
coast of Syria, the French would march to the
Rhine.

We had the usual waggery after dinner.
Macau lay was told that the last elected Cabinet
Minister ought to take the chair. He did so,
and did his duty well; but, as I was taking
him home, he confessed to me that he thought
our humour not quite becoming Cabinet Ministers.
He mentioned that, when he was last at a fish-
dinner, it was in the time of Lord Grey, who
presided, and the Cabinet Ministers sat at the
upper end of the table ; little or nothing was
said, either at dinner, or afterwards. " Now,"
added he, "our Saturnalia were too much like
a Northern Circuit dinner." He remarked that
neither Lord Lansdowne, nor the Lord Chancellor,
nor Lord Clarendon, was of the party ; and he
concluded by saying that he probably should not
attend another fish-dinner.

I thought our nonsense rather more amusing
than usual ; and was happy, at any rate, that we
had come to the end of a very tiresome, but, on
the whole, a successful session.

We had a Cabinet the next day, and Lord
Palmerston told us that he should propose to the

VOL. v 37

290 LONDON CHAP. VII.

1840. Plenipotentiaries, signing the Convention, to give
an assurance to the French Cabinet that we had
no hostile intentions in regard to France. To this
we all agreed, and very willingly, inasmuch as we
had observed that the fur ia Francese was fast sub-
siding, and that the tone of the Paris press was
become more moderate.

We were now told by Lord Minto, our First
Lord of the Admiralty, that the French had
eighteen sail-of-the-line in the Mediterranean, and
that we could bring together sixteen. Palmerston
mentioned that an Austrian Archduke was to com-
mand one of the two Austrian frigates destined to
co-operate with us ; and Palmerston also informed
us that Brunnow had told him the Emperor of
Russia would not only send a squadron from the
Black Sea to help us, but had offered to come in
person, commanding his Baltic fleet, to defend the
shores of England. At this we all laughed, and
Palmerston added that he had only given civil
thanks for this magnificent offer.

I went to a Council at the Palace on August 10,
when Lord Lovelace was sworn in Lord-Lieutenant
of Surrey. I had never before seen him, although
he was the husband of Ada Byron.

The following day the Queen prorogued Parlia-
ment. The King and Queen of the Belgians were
present, and sat in arm-chairs above the Arch-
bishop of Canterbury. Prince Albert was in an
arm-chair to the left of Her Majesty, below the
throne.

CHAP. VII. DEATH OF LORD DURHAM 291

FROM DIARY. 1840.

August 16. — H. Stcphenson called. He had just
come from Lord Durham's funeral, and told me,
as a great secret, that he was sure the poor man
had died of a broken heart ; his disappointment in
Canada had killed him.

I knew him well — too well, in some respects, to
give an impartial and full account of his character.
But I will hazard a few remarks, as near the truth
as can he told, without offence or flattery : Lord
Durham was, in the main, a kind and friendly man.
Whatever defects he had were on the surface, and
he took no pains to conceal them. He had great
advantages from his position, from his fortune, and
from his personal appearance. He had cultivated
his understanding with more assiduity than is
usually bestowed upon intellectual qualities by
young men of his position. He was a good and
fluent speaker both in Parliament and elsewhere.
He had an abundance of political courage,
sometimes, perhaps, a little approaching to
rashness ; but, in his intercourse with his friends,
he was by no means overbearing, nor, except-
ing in public controversy, arrogant or overbear-
ing. In fact, he did not attach so much value
to his character, or opinions, as to give himself
a sufficient amount of self-confidence in matters
of importance.

With all his manifest defects, he was much
beloved in his own country. Of this his funeral
gave manifest proof. It was attended by twenty

292 LONDON — ERLE STOKE CHAP. VII.

1840] thousand persons, and by a hundred and fifty
carriages of his neighbours, of all parties.

He has left Lady Durham sole mistress of all
his property. H. Stephenson made the will, and
remonstrated against that disposition. Lord Dur-
ham agreed to think it over, and two days after
said that he remained of the same mind.

August 17. — I went down to Erie Stoke, and had
the happiness of finding my children quite re-
covered from their recent illness.

September 5. — Dr. Bo wring arrived. I have
seen but little of him of late years. He walked
about with us at our usual rate, and talked in-
cessantly on all subjects, with a volubility almost
painful. However, he told some amusing anec-
dotes, particularly with reference to his late tour
in Egypt and Syria.

Amongst others he mentioned that Lady Hester
Stanhope pretended to be a magician, and said to
some Erench gentleman, " What, you don't believe
in magic ? Well, I will make my pipe-sticks walk
upright into the room." " I should be very glad
to see that," said the Erenchman. " You would
be very glad, would you ? Then, I will do it ! "

Lady Hester said she had divided her creditors
into two classes : first, those who had asked to be
paid, and whom she never would pay; second,
those who had not asked, and some of these she
would pay. She died in great poverty.

As to his opinions on religious matters, he
mentioned some singular stories of Colonel

CHAP. VII. THE DEFENCE OF CRIMINALS 293

Pcrronet Thompson, who, it seems, is a sort of 1840.
enthusiast in everything he undertakes. He once
commanded a force against the Wahabees, and,
seeing them drawn up in a false position, cried
out, " Jomini, page 230, section 4, 1 have them, by
God ! " and immediately gave orders to his troops
to fall on them.

October 1. — I went to London to attend a
Cabinet on the tiresome affairs of Mahomet Ali.
It seemed that Russell had been worked upon by
his brother, the Duke, and also by Lord Spencer.
Russell thought that we ought to make a serious
effort to conciliate France, and to listen to the
proposals of Mahomet Ali ; although he, Mahomet
Ali, had formally rejected the two offers of acting
with us in conformity with the Treaty of July
last.

October 3. — I returned to Erie Stoke, and had
a most agreeable return journey, for our Solicitor-
General, Wilde, was in the train with us.

I took occasion to ask him what he thought of
Charles Phillips's defence of Courvoisier. He said
he thought it infamous ; and that, as for himself,
he would not undertake the defence of a murderer
who confessed his guilt to him previously to trial.
On this resolution he had acted. A gentleman was
accused, not of murder, but of what some people
might think worse. The gentleman confessed to
Wilde that the charge was true, but that the
character of the principal witness might easily be
destroyed, and his evidence considered worthless.

294 ERLE STOKE — LONDON CHAP. VII.

1840. This, however, could be done only by ruining the
character of the witness. " And," said Wilde, " I
could not do that, for I knew the witness spoke
truth ; therefore I threw up my brief. It was
taken by another lawyer — the gentleman was
acquitted."

Wilde told me that, in his early days, he was
much engaged in bankruptcy cases, and he could
safely say that he hardly knew a single instance
in which the party, however high and respectable,
did not perjure himself; and, as to speaking to
character, any scoundrel could get the first men
in the country to speak to his character, lie gave
the case of O'Brien, who owed his acquittal
entirely to the character given of him by Lord
Holland and one or two others, who swore that
they believed him incapable of doing that with
which he was charged.

Mr. M. D. Hill told us of this Mr. O'Brien that,
having received some valuable services from Basil
Montagu, O'Brien said : "I can never be
sufficiently grateful to you ; but, as a token of my
esteem, I will give you the bullet that killed your
mother, and which I have for many years con-
sidered the greatest curiosity in my possession."
Basil Montagu was said to be the son of Lord
Sandwich and Miss Eay. Wilde also mentioned
that Lord Sandwich offered Hackman to try and
save his life ; but the assassin refused, saying he
did not wish to live.

October 8. — Captain Abbott, our Envoy at

CHAP. VII. CAPT. ABBOTT AND THE AFGHANS 295

Khiva, dined with mo. His singular adventures 1840.
accord well with his manners and appearance.
He came down to dinner in full uniform of a sort
of Turkish or Russian pattern, and with large
mustachios, and spurs on his boots. His manners
were most formal and rather submissively cere-
monious. He never spoke except to answer
a question, but all he said was much to the pur-
pose, and there was a determined gravity about
him very useful, I should think, in his intercourse
with such men as the Khan Huzrat of Khiva.
He gave me some dreadful accounts of the state
of society and manners of the Afghans of Herat.

He said the Nizam Futteh Khan, brother of
Dost Mahomet, was put to death in this way. He
was brought into an apartment in which were
some of the relatives of those whom he had
destroyed or injured. When there, one of them
walked up to him, and, saying, " This is for what
you did to my father," cut off one of his hands.
Another came up to him saying, " This is for
what you did to my brother," and cut off his
remaining hand. A third exclaimed, "And this
for what you did to my friend," and tore out one
of his eyes. All which he bore without a murmur,
until a woman came to him, and saying, "And
this is for what you did to me," she then cut off
his beard. He burst into tears. Some bystanders
then rushed in upon him and cut him to
pieces.

October 13. — Captain Abbott left me, and I

296 LONDON CHAP. VII.

1840. found a long letter from him in which he con-
fessed that, when leaving Khiva for Orenburgh,
he had interpolated the passport given to him by
Major Todd, and instructed himself to proceed to
the Russian headquarters. The Russian General
Peroifsky, at Orenburgh, discovered the forgery
and charged Abbott with it. The Captain con-
fessed it at once, but he did not say a word
of the transaction either to Lord Palmerston or
myself ; and his whole letter to me, when obliged
to speak of it, savoured much either of cunning
or craziness. I had previously promised Abbott
to get him employed at Herat ; but this dis-
covery, of course, made any such appointment
impossible.

October 24 — Mr. Peacock, of the India House,
came on a visit to me. He brought the news
of the resignation of Thiers. and his Ministry.
The star of Palmerston is still in the ascendant.
"We were all exceedingly diverted by the
conversation of Mr. Peacock. His memory is
prodigious, his literary attainments of a superior
order. He has a fund of entertaining anecdotes,
none of them tinged with bitterness or disagreeable
personality. He has a simple, unaffected manner,
and laughs heartily at his own jokes. His occu-
pation at the India House has brought him into
close contact with James Mill, and, through Mill,
with Jeremy Bentham, of whom he told us some
amusing anecdotes. He has the reputation of
being a good Greek and Latin scholar; but he

CHAP. VII. BIRTH OF PRINCESS ROYAL L".»7

makes no display of these attainments. He has 1840.
published talcs, two of which are called " Head-
long Hall" and "Crochet Castle," not exactly
novels, hut clever stories, put together in a way
enabling him to state his opinions. He was en-
thusiastically attached to steam-navigation, and
more particularly to a vessel of which he super-
intended the construction, called the Proserpine,
an iron boat, lately sent to India.

FROM BOOK, " BECOLLECTIONS."

On Sunday, November 22, arrived the news
that the Queen was safely delivered of a Princess,
and was doing well. I went to London, and,
inquiring at the Palace, found Her Majesty and
the infant were quite well.

On November 26 came the news of the taking
of Acre by our squadron and a small Turkish
and Austrian auxiliary force. The blowing-up
of a large powder-magazine hastened the surrender;
but the terrible fire of the squadron and the
steamers exceeded everything of the kind ever
seen ; and even our opponents now confessed that
the British fleet was never in such high order.

I called on Palmerston and congratulated him.
He was in high spirits, but complained of the
treatment he had received, particularly from
Clarendon, to whom he attributed the disclosures
that had been made of what had passed in Cabinet.
Nevertheless, Clarendon congratulated him on his
Syrian successes through Russell, who, more

VOL. v 38

298 LONDON CHAP. VII.

1840. sincere, said nothing when he conveyed C.'s
message.

I told Palmerston that, if such cabals were not
put an end to, the Government would hreak up ;
and I added that I, for one, would not helong
to a Cabinet where such double-dealing was
tolerated. Palmerston attributed much of our
difficulties to Edward Ellice, and a little of them
to our Stanley. It seemed, also, that several of
our old Whig friends entertained views of this
kind ; and, forgetting the difference of times and
circumstances, thought that, because we had stood
by revolutionary Prance against our German allies
in 1792, we ought not to desert her now.

Palmerston told me that the plan of making
a proposal to Prance, through Austria, so much
discussed in Downing Street, had come to nothing.
Palmerston also mentioned that Admiral Stopford
would not have attacked Acre if he had not
received a despatch by the Vesuvius steamer on
the night before the action. Palmerston looked
upon Napier as the real hero of the Syrian
campaign. He commanded the Turkish troops
at Beyrout, riding on a jackass ; and, when some
of them ran away, got off and pelted them with
stones.

On December 12 I called on Lady Holland,
and sat some time with her — my first visit since
her husband's death. It was a very painful visit.
She talked very freely of her past life and present
distress. Amongst other causes of regret, she

CHAP. VII. LADY HOLLAND'S SORROWS 299

said she had passed through life without niakini: 1840.
a single female friend. She said that Mr. Allen
was very kind, and read to her in the evening;
but she passed many, many dreary hours, and,
when she tried to divert her attention to indifferent
topics, almost always reverted to her own calamity.
She was suffering much pain ; and an old woman
came in, and, kneeling down, began to rub her
knees. I withdrew, promising to dine with her
the next day.

I did dine with her on that day. Miss Fox,
Lady Mary Fox, Charles Greville, Charles Howard,
and Mr. Allen, were of the party, and the con-
versation was lively enough ; but every now and
then the poor woman burst into tears, and whispered
something sad to Greville or to me. When in
the drawing-room, I thought she assumed more
than was necessary of her old air and manner
with Mr. Allen. He bore them admirably.

On December 16 I had two letters that
occasioned me much gratification. One was from
Captain Mitchell, who was a Lieutenant in the
Salsette when I sailed in that frigate in 1810.
The other was from Captain Stapleton, senior
Captain in the Cornish Miners,' when I belonged
to that corps in 1811. I had seen neither of them
since those years ; one of them asked me for an
Addiscombe appointment ; the other for a cadet-
ship for his nephew. I gave each of them what
he wanted. I do not know that I ever bestowed my
patronage in a way so agreeable to my own feelings.

300

LONDON

CHAP. VII.

1840. They were both of them excellent creatures, and
Captain Staple ton was a very accomplished man.
He volunteered into the 51st Regiment, and was
at Waterloo. I have at this moment before me
a portrait by Opie, which was bequeathed to me by
his will. When I last heard from him, he had
retired to a cottage near Sidmouth, and had ex-
changed, he told me, his flute for a violoncello,
which served, as he said, to beguile him of many
a solitary hour.

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DA Rroughton, John Cam

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